Chiefs urged to do away with outmoded customs

Sekondi, Nov 29, GNA - Madam Sophia Horner-Sam, Deputy Western Regional Minister, on Friday called on chiefs to change some aspects of the Ghanaian culture that do not conform to modern trends to make life more pleasant for women, children and the youth.

She was speaking at a forum on traditional practices and their implications on the HIV/AIDS menace in Sekondi organised by the National Council on Women and Development (NCWD).

The Deputy Regional Minister noted that some traditional practices marginalized women thereby preventing them from participating in the socio-economic life of the nation.

Madam Horner-Sam urged women to "free themselves, develop their potentials and contribute to national development".

She expressed regret that some women committed atrocities against themselves through the performance of widowhood rites, female genital mutilation and other degrading and outmoded cultural practices.

Mrs. Marian A. Tackie, Executive Director of the NCWD, said HIV/AIDS was creating orphans, adding that, women who suddenly become heads of households were on the increase and called on chiefs, opinion leaders and stakeholders, to intensify their efforts to reverse the trend.

She said strategies aimed at fighting the disease, should focus on women, children and the youth, who were most vulnerable to the disease.

Mrs. Tackie said education and the acquisition of skills by women and girls would prevent them from engaging in prostitution and other acts that exposed them to HIV/AIDS.

"Poverty exposes women and girls to abuse and higher risk behaviour and many use exploitation of girls and women as a cultural practice," she added.

She called on the government and the district assemblies to increase opportunities for their economic empowerment and to give them greater access to credits to support income-generating activities.

Mrs. Tackie also urged non-governmental organizations and civil society groups to equip women with entrepreneurial skills to reduce their dependence of men.

Efo Kojo Mawugbe, Western Regional Director of the National Commission for Culture (NCC), called on the government to introduce a National Cultural Policy to enable the NCC to perform its supervisory role effectively.

"Without it, our cultural and historical origins could not be safeguarded and the necessary changes effected" he added.

Efo Mawugbe advised Ghanaians to stop body tattooing, female genital mutilation, nose piecing and incision of tribal marks to minimise the spread of the HIV/AIDS.