CARD-Ghana Empowers School Girls with Leadership Skills

By Philip Tengzu

Wa, (UW/R), June 26, GNA – Members of the She Leads Clubs in some Senior High Schools in the Wa Municipality have been exposed to effective leadership skills as part of efforts towards bridging the gender equality gap between males and females in leadership.

The initiative by the Community Aid for Rural Development (CARD-Ghana) was under the She Leads project to prepare them for leadership roles in their schools and communities as well as the national level.

The initiative, which aimed to build the confidence of the girls and improve their public speaking skills, would also contribute to advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 5, on achieving gender equality by 2030.

Speaking at the opening of the one-day workshop in Wa, Ms. Ernestina Biney, the Acting Executive Coordinator of CARD-Ghana, reiterated the resolve of the organisation in empowering females to enable them to contribute significantly to the development of their communities.

“We hope that at the end of the day you will be empowered to understand the need for you to take up leadership positions and contribute significantly to changing and developing your societies,” she stated.

Ms Biney encouraged the girls, drawn from the Wa Senior High School (SHS), Wa Senior High Technical School, Wa Technical Institute and Wa Islamic SHS among others, to be bold and present themselves for leadership roles to serve their communities.

Ms Naema Abdullah, the Gender Desk Officer at the Upper West Regional office of the Legal Aid Commission, stressed the importance of gender equality awareness among girls and protecting their rights to equal opportunities and fair treatment.

She said girls were discriminated against in access to education, especially in financially disadvantaged families who prioritised male education over education and empowerment of the girl child.

“When it comes to opportunity men or boys should not be given an upper hand over girls because girls equally have a lot to contribute to society.

When society is skewed towards one gender, most especially the boys, to the detriment of the girls, development does not usually occur,” she observed.

Ms Abdullah, also the Regional Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Officer at the Commission, said it was about time they psyched the girls to aspire for male dominated roles in society.

The school girls were taken through menstrual hygiene management, leadership, and effective communication skills.

GNA

Edited by Caesar Abagali/Linda Asante Agyei