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SOS Children’s Village Ghana in partnership with Jiossam and Green Tec Africa commission solar water facility for Papramanten
The National Director of the SOS Children’s Villages, Mr Alex Mar Kekula in group picture with partners
and chiefs and people of Papramanten
SOS Children’s Village Ghana in collaboration with Joissam Company Limited and Green Tec Africa has commissioned a solar energy and water facility for Papramanten, a farming community in the Fanteakwa North District of the Eastern region.
The solar energy facility which has a solar light, potable water container, a phone charging unit and a refrigerator, would provide electricity and its associated services to the people of the community.
The solar facility has a mechanized borehole which would also provide clean and potable water to school children and community members in the area.
The National Director of the SOS Children’s Villages, Mr Alex Mar Kekula the project as part of his outfit’s Family Strengthening project aimed at building the capacity of families and communities by providing them with support and resources, to empower them to become self-resilient.
He said the solar energy was to provide the community members with clean and sustainable energy in line with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) seven.
“We believe that access to electricity is not just a luxury; it is a fundamental right that can catalyze progress, improve education and enhance healthcare. The solar panel we believe will not only provide clean and sustainable energy but will also serve as a beacon of hope for generations to come,” he said.
The water project, he said, was a fundamental resource to life, adding that it was provided to promote Water, Sanitation and Hygiene to create a positive impact of safe access to water in schools and improve health, growth and continued education of school-aged children and communities by reducing related diseases incidents.
He said the provision of water was in line with his outfit’s commitment to ensure that every child, regardless of their circumstances, had access to water.
For his part, the District Chief Executive of Fanteakwa North expressed gratitude to SOS Children’s Village and their partners for the kind gesture and called on the people to ensure that the facility was maintained well to benefit all and future generations.
The Chief of Papramanten, Nene Angmor Tetteh said previously community members had to walk long distances to charge their phones, adding that the solar energy facility would make it easy for them to charge their phones and help improve communication in the area.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, Papramanten
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Swedru All Blacks back to winning ways, Roshan humble King Faisal
Sekondi Rospak FC made it eight wins in eight successive home games after three second-half goals from John Amoah, Joseph Ntow and Stephen Anthony Kofi. John Amoah opened the scoring in the 55th minute after a barren first half. Joseph Ntow added to the tally in the 56th minute before Stephen Anthony Kofi rounded things up in the 74th minute to give Rospak a 3-0 win over former Premier League side King Faisal.
Elsewhere at Swedru – leaders Swedru All Blacks humbled PAC Academy in an emphatic 2-0 win. Zayat Bubakari scored first for Swedru All Blacks in the 27th minute before Rudolf Junior Nana Kwasi Mensah made it 2-0 in the 34th minute. Swedru All Blacks are top of the table with 36 points – 4 points ahead of second placed Rospak FC.
Meanwhile, Former Premier League side Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs recorded their fourth successive home victory after beaten New Edubiase United 2-1 at the Robert Mensah Park. Enoch Odoom struck first for Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs in the 19th minute but Steven Asante equalized for New Edubiase United before halftime. After the interval, Godfred Eshun scored from distance in the 65th minute to help Cape Coast Mysterious Dwarfs secure all the points.
Here are the results in Zone Two
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Cervical Cancer alert: Avoid sex at early age
The Programmes Manager of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Mary Efua Commeh, has advised young girls to avoid sex at an early age.
This, she explained, will give the cervix the opportunity to mature before they become sexually active.
“You need to delay what we call the first sexual intercourse as much as possible to give the cervix the opportunity to mature before the person becomes sexually active,” she said.
Dr Commeh stated this in an interview with The Spectator in Accra on Tuesday as a part of the Cervical Cancer awareness month.
According to her, cervical cancer was the second leading female cancer in Ghana with a total of about 3,072 cases annually, and out of that, 1,815 deaths are recorded, representing more than 50 per cent.
She indicated that “If young girls are going to be sexually active, then you need to talk to your parents about being vaccinated.”
She explained that vaccinating young girls against human papillomavirus (HPV) has been found to be a very effective way of preventing cervical cancer.
“There are countries that started HPV vaccination years ago and they are not seeing any cervical cancers now because they would have eliminated most of the high-risk HPVs in their women. So if the high-risk HPV is not there, then obviously the results on cervical cancers are going to go down,” she added.
Dr Commmey said the HPV vaccination is recommended for young girls aged nine to 14 years, adding that it had been found to be highly effective, not just for cervical cancers but for other HPV-related cancers, such as anal cancers, cancers of the vagina, genital warts, amongst others.
She further elaborated that the idea is to put up a barrier before the HPV comes in and that once a young female encounters it, she is already protected.
She also mentioned that for cervical cancers, the main cause is called HPV infection, saying generally, all sexually active women acquire HPV at some point in their lives.
However, the Programmes Manager of NCDs at the GHS mentioned that the body has a way of clearing the HPV, explaining that it is a natural mechanism that goes on, unfortunately, there are a few women whose HPV persists.
Moreover, she noted that the numbers for Cervical Cancer tend to be much higher because at times, clients would wait, and try all sorts of medications before they finally report to the health facility saying “we actually lose some women before they get to the hospitals with over 75 per cent of the cases coming in its third and fourth stages.”
Dr Commey, therefore, called for public awareness while ensuring the availability of information for prevention and control.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
