Three communities in the Bosomtwe District have been selected to benefit from the “Girl Power Project”, designed to provide more social and economic protection to girls.
These are Kuntanase, the district capital, Piase and Aputuogya.
The five-year project is being implemented by the Environmental Protection Association of Ghana (EPAG) with funding from the Netherlands Government.
Mr John Kwadwo Owusu, EPAG Executive Director, said under it girls, who had dropped out of school, would be supported to return to the classroom.
He was speaking at a durbar held to sensitize the people on the need to shield girls from violence and other forms of abuse.
The goal of the project, he said, was to increase girls’ enrolment by 20 percent and reduce violence against them by the same percentage.
A total of about 20,000 young women and girls are expected to benefit from it.
He called for concerted effort by civil society groups to fight cultural practices that tend to inhibit the growth and development of women.
Mr Haruna Yoda, EPAG Programmes Officer, said they would work in closer cooperation with the Police, the Social Welfare Department, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CRHACJ) and other bodies to ensure the success of the project.
He said they would step up public awareness campaign to help provide opportunity for the girl-child to fully exploit their potentials and become economically self-supporting.
Additionally, girls’ clubs and child protection committees would be formed in schools and the communities.
Mr Patrick Adusei-Boateng, Assembly member for Piase, said the community had instituted scholarship award for female students pursuing science course in the Senior High Schools (SHS).
