Mion (N/R), Aug 21, GNA - Activista Ghana, a youth advocacy organisation, has begun a four-month sensitisation campaign to promote positive behaviour change in young males towards sexuality issues confronting young females in the Mion District of the Northern Region. The campaign, dubbed Positive Masculinity, is funded by Power to Youth Ghana, a consortium of three organisations comprising Norsaac, Songtaba and GH Alliance, and seeks to reduce Sexual and Gender-based Violence (SGBV) by raising awareness on the need for men and other young boys to support the growth and development of women and girls. The project, being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit of the Ghana Police Service, will benefit four communities in the area- Sang, Bayanwaya, Nayilifong and Zakpalsi. Mr Issahaku Abdul-Latif, Northern Regional Coordinator of Activista Ghana, during a community sensitisation durbar on the project at Bayanwaya, explained the importance of promoting positive masculinity in these communities and said it played crucial role towards ending SGBV. He told participants at the durbar that the rapid development of their communities would largely be influenced by the preparedness of men to support women and girls develop themselves without discrimination and abuse. He urged them to consider women and girls as partners in communal development and endeavour to ensure their fundamental rights were protected in order to whip up their interest on issues of development. Mr Abdul-Latif, touching on the sustainability of the project, said about 20 men and young boys were selected from each beneficiary community to act as volunteers, who would continue to advocate on issues of SGBV. He said, 'We are also collaborating with the various youth groups in the area to solicit their support towards sustaining the project.' Mr Amadu Hamza, Assembly Member for the Sang-Bayanwaya Electoral Area in the Mion District, commended Activista Ghana for coming out with the initiative, saying the area could not experience the needed development if women and girls were continuously abused and sidelined. He urged residents to embrace the project by ensuring that women and girls were given the needed opportunities at homes and in schools to help maximise their potential. Mr Nassam Amadu, President of Sang Youth Centre, expressed support for the project and called on other young people in the area to support the initiative to promote positive masculinity and social cohesion. Madam Alhassan Rashida, one of the residents, lauded the project and appealed to the implementing partners, government and other NGOs to equip them with employable skills to empower them economically. Activista Ghana has also engaged traditional authorities and other opinion leaders in the area to rally their support for the project and established various reporting channels to ensure that cases of abuse against women and girls were reported for the necessary actions to be taken.

Source: Ghana News Agency