‘Ending Child Marriage in Ghana’ campaign: Tagba Traditional Area chiefs, queens declare support

ABOUT 50 chiefs and queens in the Tagba Traditional Area in the Volta Region have pledged to commit resources and zeal to the crusade to end child marriage in their communities.

This was after they successfully participated in a three-day joint capacity-building programme on ‘Ending Child Marriage in Ghana’.

The programme was organised by the Obaapa Development Foundation, UNFPA and the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs.

The traditional rulers made the declaration at a mini-durbar at Ave-Hevi last week Thursday.

In a speech read on his behalf before the declaration by the chiefs and queens, the Country Representative of UNFPA – Ghana, Dr Winfred Ochan, said child marriage was a serious human rights violation which left girls in trauma.

He said it was a global occurrence and existed in every region in Ghana, denying the girl the right to choose who to marry and when to marry, and that in turn deprived them of their personal development goals.

Dr Ochan said the support from traditional leaders in the crusade to end child marriage in the communities was crucial.

Protecting girls

Therefore, the UNFPA country representative lauded the chiefs and queens of the Tagba Traditional Area for their support for the crusade, saying that was a great step towards protecting girls from the injustice of forced marriage and helping them to pursue decent careers.

The Volta Regional Director of Gender, Thywill Eyra Kpe, cautioned that men who took advantage of under-aged girls and had sex with them would be made to face the full rigour of the law.

She said the Department of Gender would work around the clock with traditional rulers to end the practice of child marriage.

The Executive Director of the Obaapa Development Foundation, Nanahemaa Awindor, said the participation of chiefs in efforts to end child marriage offered high and imminent hopes for the programme’s success.  

Parents support

The Programme Specialist, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Gender Team Lead, UNFPA Ghana, Dr Doris Mawuse Aglobitse, said underage girls who fell victim to sex predators and became pregnant needed the love and support of their parents to go through childbirth and recovery.

The Head of Religious Affairs at the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Richard Obeng Boafo, said every child deserved the right to grow free from fear, dream and thrive.

Mr Boafo said chiefs held pivotal roles in shaping societal values and influencing behaviour in the communities.

The Paramount Chief of the Tagba Traditional Area and President of the Hevi Traditional Council, Torgbuiga Agbalekpor IV, said the dangers of child marriage were numerous and truncated the education of the girl and thus, should be checked.