GENERAL NEWS

DKT Promotes Contraceptive Use Among Young People

  • By Catherine Ahiador:

The prevalent statistics regarding early parenting tell a rather gloomy picture of the Lower Manya Krobo, Upper Manya Krobo and Yilo Krobo districts in the Eastern region as these areas continue to hold the unenviable tag as areas with many young parents. In view of this some notable groups, organizations and institutions have stepped up their efforts in a bid to curb the current tide.

The rate is particularly high among the youth and what is of concern is its prevalence among teenagers, specifically among the age range of 11-19 which is seen as alarming.

One of such institutions keen on seeing a reverse of the trend, DKT International, Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organization has taken a bold step to organize the youth in these areas on the importance of safeguarding their sexual reproductive health.

Addressing the workshop which saw Senior High School as well as Junior High School students from the Krobo communities in session, Madame Evelyn Doku, a Senior Midwife educated them on the need for practicing safe family planning methods and its importance.

This she noted was a bold step to avoid the spate of early pregnancies which resulted in several cases of abortion leading to damages to the reproductive health of most girls and death on many occasions. Miss Doku underscored the fact that practicing of family planning was not only for married couples but also for the youth who cannot abstain from pre-marital sex but at the same time do not want to get pregnant.

She highlighted some reversible family planning methods that students can adopt including the use of contraceptives. Some birth control methods including male and female condoms as well as other types of contraceptives were displayed and Madame Evelyn demonstrated to the students on how to use them to provide effective results.

All these were done with the aim of reducing the rate of early parenting as well as the control of HIV among the youth in the municipality in the face of these birth control methods.

Miss Doku however advised the students to always practice the reversible family planning methods especially the use of condoms. She advised the students to always and strictly resort to the use of condoms aside the family planning methods to avoid contracting STIs.

The importance of the program drew the attention of many dignitaries including the Lower Manya Municipal Director of the Ghana Education Service, GES, Nene Adawnya III, as well as the queen mother of Manya Krobo among others.

Madam Rose Gbenedji, Field’s Operation Manager of DKT International Ghana on her part also expressed worry about the high rate of HIV cases and early parenting in the municipality. ‘I believe this program will help educate the youth of Krobo about their sexual reproductive health, which would impact good moral values in our students,’ she stated.

DKT as part of its efforts currently organizes and runs the “No Yawa’ debate for second cycle schools across the country with the aim to bring to the fore the need and importance of abstinence especially among female students.

Source: ritefmonline.org

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