Set up scholarships for Zongo girls – Shamima urges Zongo Ministry

Founder and Director of Alliance for Women in Media Africa (AWMA) Shamima Muslim Alhassan has called on the Zongo Ministry to set aside scholarship schemes that targets brilliant but needy Muslim girls.

Speaking on the Morning Starr on the state of the Zongo Muslim Girl child in education as Ghana joins the rest of the world to mark International Day of the girl child today, October 11, 2017, Shamima told Francis Abban that Like in many religions, Islam’s women have fewer opportunities compared to men.

The plight of the Muslim girl is compounded when she finds herself in the Zongo, early child marriages; abuse and poverty are some of the things that inhibit her and if they are lucky to avoid all these, they are presented with the additional hurdle of competing with the male child for the chance to be educated.

Journalist Nafisa Mohammed, who was also a guest on the Morning Starr, couldn’t go to the University with her mates and waited for 5 years because she was caught in the web of poverty and the societal expectation that a Muslim girl didn’t need so much education as she needs marriage.

According to Shamima, setting aside scholarship schemes for such girls gives direct benefits to families and help develop them into great leaders. She added that Society needs female doctors, engineers to deal with problems within the community.

“So this is where we need the zongo ministry to set aside scholarship schemes that targets brilliant but needy students and help them through their educational ladder. All over the world scholarships have served as a leveler and education is ultimate leveler for the entire society”.