News
Cohabitation high among university students – Prof. Yaa Oduro
Prof. Yaa Oduro
A study conducted by the University of Cape Coast (UCC) has found a high and growing incidence of cohabitation among university students living in private hostels.
Cohabitation is to live together and have a sexual relationship without being married.
The situation is attributed to the extreme freedom in the private hostels enjoyed by the students, unlike the traditional university halls where some control mechanisms have been instituted.
In a few cases, the students put their resources together to rent the space for economic reasons.
While the majority of students thought cohabitation was bad, a few perceived it as good, fun and normal.
The study, which was also conducted in some adjoining communities found that the practice was contributing highly to teenage pregnancy and child marriage.
Professor Georgina Yaa Oduro, the Head of the Sociology and Anthropology Department at UCC, shared the findings at a workshop on ending child marriage and Gender-based violence for some traditional council registrars from eight regional houses of chiefs and the National House of Chiefs.
The training, organised by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, sought to deepen the understanding of the registrars on child marriage, gender-based violence and other harmful practices to help them function effectively.
“If you are on campus and in the halls, you have the hall masters, tutors, and the hall council to control you. In the all-female halls, for example, guys cannot visit the halls after 10:00 p.m,” Prof. Oduro said.
“But in the private hostels, comparatively, you have the freedom to do whatever you want.” Prof. Oduro said the partners performed all the roles of married couples including sex and domestic chores such as cooking, washing and giving out money.
Some of the students, particularly the young women who had to juggle academic work and domestic chores for their partners, sometimes missed lectures or attended late, affecting their studies, she noted.
Like in the communities, she observed that cohabitation among students was also characterised by gender-based violence such as forced sex, abortions and quarrels often due to the freedom in such relationships
She narrated how a 22-year-old male student of UCC died by suicide this year following a misunderstanding with his partner he was cohabiting with. Many of those relationships unfortunately ended after school, she noted.
The professor noted that very little attention had been given to the issue and called for concerted efforts by stakeholders, including parents, lecturers, school authorities, and traditional and religious leaders, to mitigate it.
Prof. Oduro observed with worry the abuse of emergency contraceptives by young girls and cautioned against the same.
“It is my understanding that such pills are supposed to be taken once in six months or so. But for some children today, it’s their everyday pill,” she stated with concern. –GNA
News
Interior minister engages key stakeholders in Ashanti Region
Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, Minister for the Interior, has paid a courtesy call on Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr. Frank Amoakohene, at the Regional Coordinating Council in Kumasi.
This meeting forms part of his stakeholder engagement efforts to promote peace and security nationwide.
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr. Frank Amoakohene, warmly welcomed Muntaka Mubarak to his office and expressed his gratitude for the Minister’s unwavering support and commitment to enhancing security in the region.
Dr. Amoakohene highlighted key security challenges plaguing the region and sought collaborative solutions to address these issues.
The Interior Minister reassured the Regional Minister of his dedication to working closely together to ensure crime doesn’t go unchecked in the region.
Since taking office, Muntaka Mubarak has been engaging key stakeholders to promote national unity, foster a shared purpose to strengthen peace and security across Ghana, leverage the wisdom and experience of stakeholders for collective progress as well as to collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the nation’s prosperity and security.
Also, Muntaka Mubarak is scheduled to meet with Christian Religious Leaders, Muslim Religious Leaders and Zongo Chiefs to foster collaboration and promote peace, social cohesion and security as well as leveraging on their influence in promoting national harmony.
The Interior Minister will also visit agencies under his ministry to boost their morale and encourage the officers to work diligently towards achieving their mandates.
It will also afford him the opportunity to familiarize himself with their operations and assess the situation on the ground for informed decision-making.
News
Rain Foundation makes Ghana proud, strikes key partnership deal
The World Conference of Mayors Inc. led by its founder Johnny L. Ford, its president Jimmie Gardner, and on Sunday,March 30, 2025, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to partner the Relevant Achievers Impacting Nations (RAIN Foundations), an international missions-based organization headed by the renowned Ghanaian Author Ralph Antwi.
The historic ceremony was preceded by the National Youth Shakers Conclave & Awards 2025 – Ghana Edition held on Saturday March 29, 2025, at The Palms Convention Center in Accra, Ghana.
Changemakers from across the 16 regions of Ghana were present to be inspired and empowered. Youth shakers from various sectors of society were awarded.
The partnership between The World Conference of Mayors Inc. and RAIN Foundations has an overriding objective of preparing young people all over the world to prepare for the mantles of leadership.
RAIN Foundations, through its global youth empowerment initiatives, will create a global network of youth shakers to help secure a better future.
The World Conference of Mayors is a global organization that brings together mayors from around the world. The goals of this great organization are trust, trade, tourism, technology transfer, twin cities, treasury, and training.
The organization is partnering RAIN Foundations to host the National Youth Shakers Conclave & Awards 2025 in twenty-five countries this year, as well as the Global Youth Shakers Conclave & Awards.
