Ofoase (Ash), Feb. 06, - The
chiefs and people of Ofoase in the Asante-Akim South Municipality have held a
public forum to discuss ways to roll back the rising teenage pregnancy in the
area.
The community has seen a sharp
increase in the number of teenage mothers over the past two years, something
that has become a major concern.
The forum brought together
chiefs, health workers, parents, religious leaders, parents, members of the
unit committee, teachers and school children.
Mr. Kwakye Ameyaw, a Physician
Assistant at the Ofoase Community Health Centre announced that 55 out of 395
pregnant women, who received antenatal care at the facility, last year, were
teenagers.
For year, 2016, a total of 385
pregnant women attended antenatal clinic and they included 30 teenage girls.
Mr. Ameyaw added that these
pregnant girls were aged between 13 and 18 years.
He said there was every
indication that the teenage mothers would drop out of school and would not have
the opportunity to live their academic dreams.
He reminded everybody,
particularly, parents to do more to give strong protection to children - to
assist them to make the right choices.
The Reverend Asante Yeboah Koree,
the Ofoase District Minister of the Methodist Church, said parents had a responsibility
to give good character training and to guide their children to grow into
responsible adults.
They should spend quality time
with them, he said, adding that, pressure of work should not be any excuse.
GNA
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