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Provide children with education, protect them from early sex …Gender expert urges parents in UWR
Madam Charity Bature (with microphone), addressing the community members
The Upper West Regional Director of the Department of Gender, Madam Charity Bature, has called on parents to take responsibility for their wards to help prevent teenage pregnancy and school dropout.
She said parents were responsible for providing for their children in terms of food, clothing, and shelter; however, some parents rather encouraged their wards to go outside and provide for themselves, which in some cases leads to teenage pregnancy.
Madam Charity Bature made the call at a community engagement on Social and Behavioural Change (SBC) organised by the Club of Children and Youth in Broadcasting (CYIB-Curious Minds) in partnership with Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) and the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Funds (UNICEF) at Kagu in the Wa Municipality.
She said the high increase in school dropouts was worrying, and parents needed to take action to ensure children became responsible as they grew.
Madam Charity Bature urged parents and community leaders to encourage their pregnant girls to go back to school after delivery to carve a better future for themselves and their babies.
“Let’s own up to our responsibilities as parents and train our children to become successful in the future. We need to have time to educate our girl child at home. When you have no time for the child, the child becomes infl uenced by peers and, in the end, becomes pregnant and a school dropout,” she said.
She stressed the need for parents to desist from marrying off their children and rather provide them with education and also protect them from early sex.
She encouraged young people, especially women and children, to speak up on issues that affected them.
She advised girls in the community to take their education very seriously and urged the chiefs to strengthen measures to curb the menace of school dropouts.
The Project Coordinator of CYIB-Curious Minds, Mr. Kingsley Obeng-Kyereh, said the engagement sought to create a platform to interact with children, parents, and community leaders to understand their challenges and also educate them on the need to be responsible for their children.
He said the best role model for a child was the parents, and he urged parents to live an exemplary life for their wards to emulate.
Mr. Kingsley Obeng-Kyereh said lack of parental care for children was one of the causes of teenage pregnancies and child marriage and encouraged parents to double their efforts in catering for their children to help curb the situation.
He said Curious Minds sought to ensure that children and youth were well informed and participated in decision-making on issues affecting them by sharing information, building partnerships, and generating knowledge.
From Rafia Abdul Razak, Wa
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Minister of Health appeals to Tamale Teaching Hospital striking doctors
The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh has appealed to the striking doctors at the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) to calll off the suspension and come to the negotiation table.
However, he refused to apologise as demanded by the striking doctors.
The doctors after a meeting yesterday have withdrawn emergency services following the dismissal of the Chief Executive Officer of the hospital.
This follows an unannounced visit to the hospital by the Minister on Tuesday.
The Minister made the appeal when addressing the media in Accra on Today, April 24 2025.
According to him, dialogue is the only way out to resolve the issue, adding that he was ready collaborate with them.
“I am prepared for us to come around the table and discuss whatever we need to discuss,” Mr Akandoh said.
“My humble appeal to my wonderful medical doctors and health professionals at Tamale Teaching Hospital is that I am the first person to take care of your interests. Therefore, let’s call off the strike and let’s all regroup and strategise going forward,” he concluded.
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Health Minister donates medical equipment to Tamale Teaching Hospital, pledges commitment to reforms
The Minister for Health Kwabena Miintah Akandoh has reiterated government’s commitment to address long-standing challenges in the health sector, describing the health system as one that requires urgent reform and collective responsibility.
He made these remarks during a donation of some essential medical equipment and supplies to the Tamale Teaching Hospital on behalf of the Ministry of Health.
The donation included a wide range of equipment such as ECG machines, ICU ventilators, cardiac monitors, anesthesia machines, infant incubators, and essential
Consumables amounting to about 35 items.
Among the items highlighted were
Emergency Health Equipment (EHE) sets, nebulizer sets, and medical-grade towels.
The Health Minister acknowledged the difficult working conditions health professionals continue to endure and emphasized that government efforts alone would not be enough to resolve systemic issues.
He called for unity across the health sector and urged all stakeholders, including medical doctors, nurses, and pharmacists, to work together to ensure that the country’s limited resources are used efficiently.
He noted that the wellbeing of the ordinary Ghanaian should be central to healthcare delivery, cautioning against practices that marginalize the underprivileged due to resource scarcity. According to him, every Ghanaian life is valuable, and the system must reflect that belief in both policy and practice.
Mr.Akandoh stressed that his leadership approach is rooted in humility, collaboration, and respect for all health workers. While acknowledging that change may come with challenges, he maintained that cooperation is key to achieving lasting improvements in the sector.
The Minister pleaded with health professionals in the Tamale Teaching Hospital to call off the strike and regroup to strategize on more effective ways to address their concerns through dialogue and collaboration with relevant authorities.
The donation to the Tamale Teaching Hospital forms part of a broader national initiative to modernize medical infrastructure and enhance service delivery in Ghana’s healthcare.
