By Bertha Badu-Agyei
Accra, Oct 8 GNA-Over 50 young students and teachers at Ashaiman have received education on School-Related Gender-Based Violence (SRGBV) to equip them with the knowledge to recognize and respond to GBV issues.
The educational session, facilitated by experts in gender-based violence (GBV) forms part of the U.S. Department of State International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) Impact Project, spearheaded by Ms Regina Asamoah, an IVLP alumna and founder of Missing Children Ghana.
The project aims to create a pool of active agents of change committed to ending GBV in Schools and is funded by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs with the Meridian International Center as the implementing partner.
According to Ms Asamoah, the project, titled ‘Young Voices Matter: Empowering Boys and Girls in the Fight Against GBV’ sought to create a pool of active agents of change committed to ending GBV in schools.
She disclosed that a total of 100 students from two schools in the Greater Accra region were expected to benefit from the sessions, with 10 trained teachers leading efforts to extend the knowledge across other schools.
ACP (Rtd) Patience Ashorkor Quaye, U.S. Embassy Ghana GBV Champion and Fellow of Missing Children Ghana, said SRGBV could create a hostile learning environment, negatively affecting students’ well-being and academic performance.
She said school environments should be places where young minds were nurtured and not torn down and appealed to all stakeholders to act to end all forms of gender-based violence in schools.
Dr Dzifa Abla Attah, a clinical psychologist and lecturer, who delved into the emotional trauma caused by bullying, harassment and teasing, said the scars left afterwards were often invisible, but deeply affected academic performances.
“We need to understand that every act of cruelty can change a life forever” she said and encouraged students to seek help from teachers and build up their confidence to be firm and assertive.
Prof. Samuel Kojo Kwofie, Head of the Biomedical Engineering Department University of Ghana, warned students about Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence and the dangers of cyberbullying.
He shared practical steps to prevent cyberbullying, including safeguarding personal information and avoiding inappropriate online contents adding that “the internet can either be a tool for empowerment or a weapon for harm”.
Educational posters were distributed to be displayed in the school environment, to sustain conversations about SRGBV and other forms of violence in schools.
GNA