Youth Advocates Ghana (YAG) with support from Planned Parenthood Association, Ghana, last Friday engaged senior high school students on sexual and gender-based violence in Commemoration of the International Women's Day.
The school engagement, implemented as part of the Country Acceleration Strategy (CAS) Initiative funded by African Union Commission and International Planned Parenthood Federation Africa Region, engaged eighty-one (81) students of Prince Boateng Memorial School, Nsawam, on unpacking concept, forms, consequences, and reporting mechanisms of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in Ghana, a statement issued by YAG copied the Ghanaian Times said.
Addressing students at the engagement, the Policy and Advocacy Officer of Youth Advocates Ghana, Ms Vivian Amenorpe, defined SGBV, highlighted the forms and the harm it has on victims.
"Sexual and gender-based violence, does not only affect victims, physically, it also affects them psychologically, emotionally and leaves a scar on them throughout their life time,"she noted.
She stressed that SGBV is highly influenced by power, norms, and highly entrenched harmful cultural practices in the country, adding, perpetrators of this act exert power on their victims threatening them not to speak, hence people who have been abused in any form, should seek help through the various available platforms such as the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, Social Welfare, DOVVSU, and the Orange Support Unit.
MsHairatu Abdul Wahab, a youth champion, introduced the PPAG Yenkasa toll-free line and urged young people to make effort to report in any instance of abuse to help end all forms of SGBV.
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The participants expressed gratitude for the engagement, and pledged to speak up for themselves, support victims of abuse report all cases of abuse, as well as help stop all forms of abuse against women and girls.
"Parents should make extra effort to protect their children, especially girl-child from all forms of abuse," noted, SahdiyaMuntari, a student from Prince Boateng Memorial School.
"Young people should report when they go through any form of abuse," noted, MrDorcasSeakor a participant from Prince Boateng Memorial School.
The Country Acceleration Strategy (CAS) initiative, an initiative on Health and Wellbeing, in particular on Adolescent and Youth Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (AY SRHR) under the African Union Commission (AUC) and IPPF Africa Region Packard Project, seeks to strengthen coordination to increase access for adolescents and youth to SRHR in Africa.
