Involve boys in adolescent reproductive health campaign

By Sumaiya Salifu Saeed, GNA    

Ave-Dzalele (VR), July 24, GNA - Mr Charles Duodu, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Focal Person at the Volta Regional Health Directorate (VRHD), has called on health promoters to factor adolescent boys in their adolescent reproductive health campaign programmes.

He noted that often the focus had been on issues affecting the adolescent girl child, leaving the adolescent boy to fend for himself.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on the sidelines of a community durbar on adolescent health and development organized by the VRHD in collaboration with the Volta Regional Coordinating Council and UNFPA, Mr Duodu said the 'neglect' did not allow for a holistic development of boys and growth of society.

He said though much attention was given to girls because they could easily be seen as getting pregnant, the boys could easily be the perpetrators of that 'crime', therefore needed to be added to any campaign on reproductive health services.

Mr Duodu said all adolescents had unique developmental patterns thereby needing different approaches in the delivery of reproductive health services.

He said girls and boys should be given equal attention in their health needs and pleaded for more attention for both and cautioned against assigning gender roles to children, saying, it stifled creativity.

Mr Duodu said there was the need for gender mainstreaming if society was to develop holistically.

Dr Prince Sodoke Amuzu, District Chief Executive, Akatsi North, said the Assembly was undertaking pragmatic measures to address issues related to reproductive health needs of the youth in the area.

He said actions were already underway to reverse the District's tag as a teenage pregnancy area.

Dr Amuzu said the Assembly was engaging chiefs, opinion leaders and pupils to address the concerns.      

GNA

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