Fabulous Woman Network marks 10 years with call for youth to embrace green living

The Fabulous Woman Network (FNW), a non-governmental organisation that supports the growth of women, youth and institutions through entrepreneurship and leadership, has marked its 10th anniversary with a call on young ladies to embrace the green economy and its long-term sustainability.

The organisation also implored the youth to set goals for themselves in order to become responsible adults in the future.

Held under the theme “Cultivating a Greener Future Through a Sustainable Lifestyle”, the iFAB 2025 mentoring programme took place at Asiwa in the Bosome Freho District of the Ashanti Region. It brought together a number of young participants—largely girls—from Aboabo Kesse, Asiwa and Bobiem to be mentored and encouraged to adopt practices that promote environmental sustainability.

Address

The Founder and Executive Director of Fabhub Ashanti, Ama Duncan, urged the youth to adopt environmentally friendly practices to help preserve the planet and prolong the existence of humanity. She stressed the importance of embracing green technology to protect the environment from degradation.

As part of the organisation’s long-term vision, she announced that Fabhub intends to educate young people in Aboabo Kesse and Asiwa on climate-smart agricultural practices and modern methods of drying cocoa beans.

On his part, the Acting District Coordinating Director for Bosome Freho, Mr Evans Antwe—who also doubles as the District Agricultural Director—commended FNW for instilling environmentally conscious habits in the youth.

He revealed that for the past five years, he has attempted to encourage farmers in the district to adopt organic farming practices, but to no avail.

“For four years, I have been trying to introduce organic farming to them, but it is not working because all the foods that farmers are serving us are poisonous,” he said.

Mr Antwe therefore welcomed the idea of introducing organic farming to the youth, saying, “As they grow, they grow with the idea and it becomes part and parcel of them, because all the food that we are being fed with are not good—they are saturated with chemicals.”

Discipline and direction

Also speaking at the event, the Bosome Freho District Police Commander, ASP Fatawu Zakaria, urged the youth to be ambitious and set clear goals for themselves. He challenged them to steer clear of vices such as sexual activity, drug use and alcoholism, stressing that such lifestyles would ruin their future.

He further charged them to be disciplined and take their education seriously in order to achieve their goals.

The police officer reminded the youth that success in life comes with challenges, which they must face boldly and overcome.

Teenage pregnancy

Taking her turn, the Bosome Freho District Health Director, Mrs Francisca Ahiavi, expressed concern about the rising number of teenage pregnancies in the district. She disclosed that in the past three years alone, the district had recorded over 300 cases.

“Looking at the data that we have from 2020 till now, we have recorded over 301 teenage pregnancies within the community, and through the intervention of stakeholders, we have been able to reduce it to 212,” she said.

Galamsey and female education

Adding his voice to the discussion, the Bosome District Education Director, Mr Michael Bruce Enin, expressed grave concern over the negative impact of illegal mining (galamsey) on female education in the area. 

He largely attributed the rising teenage pregnancy rates to the influence of galamsey, and urged parents, guardians and all stakeholders to come together to address the menace.