Govt urged to provide adequate funding to social welfare, community devt dept
The government has been urged to provide adequate funding to the social welfare and community development departments to enable them to effectively deal with child protection issues.
The Project Manager, My Life My Rights (MLMR) project, Julius Kwame Tsatsu, said it was essential for the department to be well-resourced in order for them to deliver on their mandate, especially protecting children; it needed adequate funding and logistical support.
He said, “For instance, in Adansi South in the Ashanti Region and Asunafo North in the Ahafo Region, where we operate, the departments have nine and five staff members, respectively, serving over 400 communities in both districts”.
Forum
Mr Tstatsu made the remarks while addressing the annual learning forum of My Life My Rights (MLMR) project, which is an intervention by Right To Play Ghana, in Ejisu in the Ashanti Region on the theme: "Strengthening Quality Education Through Child Protection and Inclusive Practices".
It is a three-year project funded by Nyonkopa Cocoa, a licensed cocoa buying company, together with their mother company Barry Callebaut in Switzerland, with the objective of improving the protective environment of children in cocoa growing areas, particularly in the areas of quality education, child protection and community empowerment.
The initiative operates across 50 schools and 50 communities within four districts in the Ashanti and Ahafo regions. As part of the project, 412 trained teachers are actively using play-based learning in their classrooms, with ongoing support from 100 dedicated Teacher Champions.
Similarly, 978 community members have joined Village Savings and Loans Associations.
These groups, largely driven by 620 female members, generate over GH¢1.6 million in cumulative savings.
He mentioned that the staff in Asunafo North have only one motorbike while Adansi South have only three motorbikes to follow up on many child-related issues within the over 400 communities under their jurisdiction.
We appeal to all relevant stakeholders to join the campaign towards the provision of adequate resources to social workers to enable them to follow up on cases of child protection and bring them to a proper closure.
Teacher deficit
He called for the posting of teachers to 50 schools in their project communities that have a high attrition rate, saying “a school where there should be nine teachers, including the head teacher, has only three staff”.
He said the development has forced the affected school to adopt multi-grade teaching where one teacher handles three different classes in one classroom, with its attendant consequences on quality teaching.
“We are appealing to the government to post teachers to schools with deficits to enhance teaching and learning”, he stressed.
The Interim Country Director for Right To Play Ghana, Iljitsj Wemerman, said investing in children is one of the smartest and most powerful choices that can be made for communities and for Ghana as a whole.
He charged the participants to strengthen collaboration across all levels of government and deepen their shared commitment towards the protection of children.
The Director, Pre-Tertiary Education, Ministry of Education, Nana Baffour Awuah, in a remark, said the move was in line with the ministry’s goal that no child should be left behind in education.
In an interview, Nana Agyei Addo Raphael and Joana Akyaa Koampah, who were among the participants commended Right To Play for the initiative saying it would go a long way to safeguard the right of children.
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