By Edward Acquah, GNA
Accra, July 20, GNA – The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) on Monday assured the Ussher Hospital of its continued support for an integrated programme empowering vulnerable adolescent girls and young mothers.
Dr Sennen Hounton, the UNFPA Regional Director for West and Central Africa, gave the assurance during a visit to the hospital on Monday as part of his four-day visit to Ghana ahead of the African Union Extraordinary Summit on Health.
The visit enabled Dr Hounton to interact with beneficiaries of the hospital’s adolescent-centred programme, which combines sexual and reproductive health services, protection and economic empowerment for vulnerable girls and young women.
Commending the hospital’s staff, Dr Hounton praised their commitment to improving the dignity and well-being of the communities they serve.
“I think the passion that you are showing is exactly what motivates us, and I’m really impressed,” he said.
“On behalf of my boss, we can commit to you to do our utmost best to continue supporting you in the work,” he said.
The Ussher Hospital programme uses ante- and post-natal clinic attendance as an entry point to connect adolescent mothers and vulnerable women to a wider package of services.
These include livelihood and entrepreneurship training, financial literacy, nutritional counselling, family planning, mental health support, HIV and Hepatitis B screening, and counselling on sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence.
Hospital authorities said the initiative had also created pathways for economic independence by equipping beneficiaries with vocational skills and linking them to employment opportunities.
One of the flagship interventions is the UNFPA-Prada Group initiative, “Fashion Expressions: The Stories She Wears,” launched in 2021.
Implemented in partnership with International Needs Ghana and the Polyclinic Sewing Centre in Jamestown, the project provides vulnerable young women and girls with fashion design training and connects them with Ghanaian fashion brands, helping to reduce their vulnerability to sexual and gender-based violence through economic empowerment.
Hospital officials said 30 beneficiaries had enrolled in the programme since 2021, with 10 successfully completing their training.
Dr Philomina Bonsu, Medical Superintendent of Ussher Hospital, said UNFPA’s support had significantly strengthened the hospital’s adolescent health programme.
While the hospital had long provided adolescent health services under the Ghana Health Service, the partnership with UNFPA had expanded its focus beyond clinical care to include skills development and empowerment, she said.
“We realised that many adolescents were school dropouts and some had substance abuse challenges, so we introduced the programme to strengthen their capacity and help them become productive members of the community,” she said.
Dr Bonsu noted that although beneficiaries received sewing machines, stipends and start-up support after training, many young people had expressed interest in other vocational areas.
“Some are interested in hairdressing, nail technology and other trades. We hope the programme will be expanded to cover these areas so more adolescents can benefit,” she said.
Dr Brown appealed for additional partnerships to help address the hospital’s infrastructure and space constraints.
Dr Hounton’s visit coincides with the African Union Extraordinary Summit on Health, scheduled for July 21-22 in Accra, which will bring together African leaders and partners to strengthen political commitment towards ending AIDS and tuberculosis by 2030, reducing preventable maternal deaths, advancing universal health coverage and building resilient health systems across the continent.
Dr Hounton is a medical doctor with more than two decades of experience in maternal health and health systems, oversees UNFPA’s programmes in 23 countries across West and Central Africa.
GNA
Edited by Agnes Boye-Doe
20 July 2026
Reporter: Edward Acquah