Women urged to pursue courses in technical training
The Caretaker Central Regional Minister, Mrs Ama Benyiwa Doe, has advised women to pursue courses in technical and vocational fields and become role models for female students pursuing similar professions.
She pointed out that societal norms, customs and traditions had made women perceive technical and vocational courses such as auto mechanics, electrical installation, welding, masonry, plumbing and carpentry as trades that are the preserve of men, which requires the use of enormous physical strength.
Mrs Benyiwa Doe gave the advice in a speech read for her at the regional launch of a campaign to promote female enrolment into non-traditional professional trades in Cape Coast.
The programme which was jointly organised by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, and the Gender Responsive Skills and Community Development Project (GRSCDP) was on the theme: “Women Empowerment: A key to sustainable Socio-economic development.”
It was aimed at creating awareness and boosting girls interest in non-traditional professional trades and was attended by students, women groups, heads of department and traditional rulers from all the districts in the Central Region.
Mrs Benyiwa Doe said although Ghana had achieved gender parity in primary education, female enrolment in technical and vocational education training (TVET) was relatively low, accounting for only 15 per cent of the total enrolment.
She attributed the situation to prejudices, ignorance and the lack of encouragement of female students by their parents or guardians, teachers and peers.
She added that to help address the situation, the government, in collaboration with the Ghana Education Service (GES), had in the on-going educational reforms revised the curriculum and provisions had been made for both boys and girls to study technical and vocational subjects at the various levels.
The care taker minister said that was part of the comprehensive policy framework of the government to narrow the gap between the nation's educational system and the job market, adding that under the educational reform programme, the number of senior high technical schools had been increased from 20 to 120, indicating greater access to technical and vocational education for both boys and girls.
Mrs Benyiwa Doe explained that to achieve equitable socio-economic development through gender mainstreaming and women empowerment, the Government of Ghana and the African Development Bank in 2009 launched a $9.4 million four-year Gender Responsive Skills and Community Development Project (GRSCDP) to promote gender mainstreaming in the national development processes, as well as improve the social, legal, civic, political, economic and cultural conditions of the people.
She said 59 metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies nation-wide were beneficiaries of the project, out of which seven districts in the Central Region were also benefiting, adding that five computers had been donated to the Gomoa-Panafokrom Community Development Vocational/Technical Institute, in addition to training instructors of the school in competency based training methodology, while scholarships had been awarded to 44 girls from poor households in the seven beneficiary districts as incentive to pursue technical skills training.
She indicated that the project was also embarking on a vigorous information education and communication campaign at both national and regional levels to sensitise parents, policy makers and the public to the subject and the need to motivate girls to pursue technical courses.
The Regional Director of the Department of Women, Ms Paulina Abayage, in her welcome address said the government was committed to achieving the Millennium Development Goal 3, which relates to promoting gender equality, and had therefore put in place a policy framework for mainstreaming gender in Ghana’s socio-economic development agenda.
She said from her outfit, in the 2011/2012 academic year, scholarships were awarded to four girls from each of the districts in the region and that the number had been increased to six per district. She called on all stakeholders to endeavour to support the project to ensure its success.
GNA
