Teenage pregnancy increases in Shama
Mr Alfred Ekow Gyan, Deputy Western Regional Minister, has decried the high rate of teenage pregnancy in the Shama District of the Western Region.
He, therefore, tasked parents, guardians, teachers and all stakeholders in the education sector, to help halt this negative trend by investing in the education of their children, especially the girl-child.
Mr. Gyan said this at the Annual Kramer Scholarship Awards, instituted by the Takoradi International Company (TICO), at Aboadze, which offered scholarship packages for about 200 students in the area this year.
“It is a pity that Shama District has been one place where teenage pregnancies are rampant; therefore let us do everything possible to halt this negative trend in our society through the appropriate investment in the education of our children, “he opined.
He urged the scholarship beneficiaries to show seriousness in their studies so that the investment of their parents and other stakeholders would not go waste.
The deputy regional minister assured that government would continue to provide the necessary interventions in the education sector, and do its best in the expansion of facilities in order to increase enrollment and retention.
He entreated other corporate bodies to support education in order to alleviate poverty in society, since government alone could not shoulder all responsibilities in the sector.
The General Manager of TICO, Nana Sarfo Adjei Kantanka, reiterated the company’s commitment in supporting needy but brilliant students within its operational area.
He said the company had supported over 1,600 students from the basic to tertiary level, since the inception of the scholarship scheme about 12 years ago.
He, therefore, advocated for the sustenance of the Scheme through the support of various stakeholders in the district.
The Acting President of the Shama Traditional Council, Nana Kwamina Wienu the Second, who is also the chief of Yabiw, applauded the outstanding contribution of TICO towards quality education delivery in the area.
He said in times past, it was difficult for students in the traditional area to benefit from any scholarship scheme, since the area is a fishing community, saying “we only hear of scholarship for children of cocoa farmers”.
He said however that with the establishment of companies in the area, students had been privileged to access such facility, and charged beneficiaries to put in extra effort in their studies to justify the investment made in them.
Source: GNA