“Girl Power Project” to benefit about 12,000 in Wa West

Lassie-Tuolu, (U/W), Sept. 24, GNA – About 12,000 girls from 50 communities in the Wa West District of the Upper West Region will benefit from post-primary education scholarships through the “Girl Power Project”.

Mr. Mustapha Susolow, Executive Director of CAPECS, announced this at a durbar of chiefs, stakeholders and opinion leaders of Lassia-Tuolu Community in the Wa West District.

The project, being implemented by the Centre for the Alleviation of Poverty, the Environment and Child Support, (CAPECS) is under the supervision of Plan Ghana with funding from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It would end in 2015.

Mr Susolow said the Girl Power Project was geared towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, (MDGs) especially Goal Two and Three, which advocate Compulsory Primary Education and the eradication of Violence Against Girls and Women and enhancing the social, economic and political participation of women.

He said the programme had an overall objective of building and strengthening civil society to ensure the equal rights and opportunities of girls and young women in developing countries.

Mr. Susolow said in the Wa West District, the goal of the project was to empower girls aged between 10 and 17 in school and young women between 18 and 24 out of school to ensure their full participation in the social, economic and political development of the district by 2015.

The CAPECS Executive Director said to ensure the full participation of the beneficiary communities in the implementation of the programme, various training programmes would be organised for the stakeholders, including staff of the District Assembly, School Management Committees and head teachers.

Also 15 journalists would receive training on Child Rights reporting to enable them to educate the public through the accurate and adequate reportage of the programme.

Mr. Alhassan Abu Dokuwie, an Official of CAPECS, said by December 2015, it was their expectation that young girls and women would have knowledge and skills that would enable them to take decisions that affected their lives.

According to him, it was also expected that all children of school going age would be enrolled, retained and sustained by 2015 and also women would be empowered economically with assistance from their husbands.

Mr. Dokuwie said child protection committees would be formed to ensure that children were protected against any form of violence.

Madam Saadia Gbolo, Gender Desk Officer of the Wa West District Assembly, stated that education was a weapon for a successful life in future and urged parents to send their children to school, especially the girl child.

She said education would empower them economically for them to take proper care of their families, thereby, reducing poverty.