By Elizabeth Abban
Tamale, March 30, GNA – BasicNeeds-Ghana, with New York University and University of Ghana, will implement a five-year intervention, “ANZANSI Family Project,” to improve developmental and health outcomes for female adolescents.
The five-year intervention is dubbed: “Testing the Impact of Family-based Intervention to Improve Developmental and Health Outcomes for Female Adolescents (ANZANSI Family Project).”
The project, funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the United States, aims to reduce rural-urban migration among adolescent girls in the Northern Region. It will be rolled out in the Tamale Metropolis and Sagnarigu Municipality to address the growing trend of young girls migrating to southern parts of the country in search of menial jobs, often exposing them to exploitation and unsafe living conditions.
The initiative combines two evidence-based approaches. The first is a family-level economic empowerment (EE) intervention aimed at strengthening household financial stability through matched children’s savings accounts (CSA) and microfinance support. The second is the Multiple Family Group (MFG) intervention, which focuses on improving family functioning and addressing parental beliefs regarding girls’ education, gender norms, and child labour.
As part of preparations, a stakeholder engagement was held in Tamale with headteachers, School Health Education Programme (SHEP) coordinators from selected schools, representatives from education directorates, and project implementers. The engagement aimed to deepen participants’ understanding of the project and secure their commitment to its implementation.
Under the initiative, 960 adolescent girls and an equal number of caregivers will be recruited from 32 Junior High Schools (JHS) identified as having high female dropout rates over a three-year period. Each participating school will enroll 30 girls, particularly those in Basic Seven and Eight, who are most at risk of dropping out or migrating for kayayei (head porter) work.
Eligible participants include girls aged 11 to 14 years who are enrolled in school, live within a family setting, and have recorded at least 10 per cent unexcused absenteeism in the previous academic term. Schools will express interest and be randomly assigned to either intervention or control groups.
A key component of the project is ANZANSI Child Development Accounts, a matched savings scheme to support girls’ education. Each participant will have a savings account opened in her name, co-signed by a caregiver at a recognised financial institution. Families will be encouraged to make monthly deposits over a 12-month period, with the project matching contributions at a 1:2 ratio, capped at GH¢200 per month or GH¢2,400 in total.
Participants who reach the maximum savings threshold could accumulate up to GH¢3,600. Seventy per cent of the funds will be used for educational expenses such as uniforms, books, and school supplies, while the remaining 30 per cent may be invested in small-scale family businesses to improve household income and resilience.
Mr. Kingsley Kumbelim, Programme Officer at BasicNeeds-Ghana and Project Coordinator of the ANZANSI Family Project, said the full implementation follows a successful pilot phase that recorded improvements in family support for girls’ education and reduced migration risks.
He noted that financial instability remains a key driver of adolescent migration, stressing that the project addresses root causes by empowering families economically and promoting positive attitudes toward girls’ education.
“The project aims to build cohesive and financially stable families capable of supporting the education of the girl-child and preventing unsafe migration,” he said.
Participants described the initiative as timely and impactful, particularly in addressing financial barriers to education in deprived communities.
GNA
Edited by Eric K. Amoh /Audrey Dekalu