Women, young people urged to actively champion SRHR issues

Women and young people have been urged to actively participate in discussions and champion Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) issues in their respective communities.

The Deputy Director of Oxfam in charge of West and Central Africa, Assalama Sidi, who made the call, emphasised that fostering discussions on SRHR issues and providing adolescents with the knowledge to make informed decisions were the surest ways to combat gender-based violence, reduce inequality and promote positive masculinity.

Ms Sidi made the appeal during a visit by Oxfam International Board Members to inspect the impact of some projects implemented in the Sagnarigu and Savelugu Municipalities in the Northern Region.

The team first toured Sagnarigu to assess the "Power to Choose" (P2C) project which is being implemented in partnership with Norsaac.

The five-year project aims to improve access to SRHR information and services for young women and adolescents in vulnerable situations.

It also aims to train health providers and community champions to support and advocate SRHR while addressing challenges such as drug abuse and unintended pregnancies.

Additionally, the team visited Bunglung in the Savelugu Municipality to oversee the Women’s Economic Advancement for Collective Transformation (WEACT) project.

This initiative, funded by Global Affairs Canada, seeks to enhance economic empowerment for over 5,400 women in Ghana, providing them with technical and financial support for sustainable development.

Satisfaction

Speaking to the media after the tour, Ms Sidi expressed satisfaction about the impact of the projects in the various communities.

She expressed her outfit's commitment to scale up the projects to be able to reach out to more women and young people to empower and improve their standards of living.

For her part, the Coordinator for the P2C project, Fauziatu Abdul Rahaman, indicated that 7,667 young women, adolescent boys and girls across the implemented communities had been trained in SRHR issues such as menstruation and menstrual hygiene management, family planning and sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Writer's email:mohammed.fugu@graphic.com.gh