Tag: Ministry of Gender

  • Adoption cases on the rise, 158 applications received in first half of 2024 – CAA

    Adoption cases on the rise, 158 applications received in first half of 2024 – CAA

    Ghana is experiencing a notable surge in adoption interest, with the Central Adoption Authority (CAA) reporting that 158 families have sought to adopt children in the first half of this year.

    The CAA, under the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, also fielded 220 inquiries about adoption during this period.

    Mr. Stephen Tikai Dombo, Head of the Authority, shared these figures and expressed optimism about the increasing trend in adoption applications.

    While he couldn’t provide a year-on-year comparison, he confirmed a significant upward trajectory in the numbers.

    “This represents a steady growth in the number of applications over the months, reflecting a strong and growing interest in adoption,” he told the Ghanaian Times in an exclusive interview.

    The data shows a monthly fluctuation in applications: 24 in January, rising to 28 in March, peaking at 41 in April, and then declining to 17 by June.

    Inquiries followed a similar pattern, with a high of 70 in January and a low of 18 in June.

    Mr. Dombo noted that many families who have previously adopted are now looking to adopt additional children, viewing it as a profoundly rewarding act.

    He shared a story from the Ashanti Region where a couple, after adopting a child, were blessed with twins of their own within the same year, underscoring the perceived blessings of adoption.

    He encouraged more families to consider adoption and assured them of comprehensive support throughout the process.

    Mr. Dombo also urged the public to support couples facing fertility challenges who turn to adoption.

    He explained that adoption is a legal process that transfers parental rights and responsibilities to adoptive parents, with adoption orders typically being irreversible.

    However, he pointed out that some applicants’ specific preferences, such as desired physical traits or age, can prolong the process if such children are not readily available.

    “For instance, an applicant seeking a fair, hairy, and smart child might experience a longer wait time if such a child is not immediately available,” he explained.

    He advised applicants to remain flexible to speed up their adoption.

    The adoption process includes a mandatory six-month investigation to locate a child’s biological parents.

    “If the parents are not found within this period, the investigation can be extended. After a year, if no biological parents are located, the child can be placed for adoption,” he clarified.

    If the parents cannot be found within this timeframe, the search can be extended, and after a year, if no biological parents are identified, the child can be placed for adoption.

    Mr. Dombo reassured the public about the well-being of adopted children, noting that Ghana is a member of the Hague Convention, which governs international adoptions.

    “The CAA works closely with adoption authorities in other member countries to ensure that children adopted abroad are monitored and well-protected. Post-adoption monitoring is conducted quarterly, with reports including photos and videos sent to prove the children’s well-being,” he said.

    The CAA collaborates with international adoption authorities to ensure that adopted children abroad are well cared for, with quarterly post-adoption monitoring including reports, photos, and videos to confirm their welfare.

    Since January 2020, the CAA has visited 75 adoptive families across eight regions, offering psychosocial support, counseling, and necessary assistance to both the families and their adopted children.

    “These visits provide psychosocial support, counselling, and any necessary assistance to both the families and the adopted children,” Mr Dombo said.

  • Ministry of Gender trains market executives as Paralegals to tackle domestic violence

    Ministry of Gender trains market executives as Paralegals to tackle domestic violence

    The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection in Ghana has undertaken a significant initiative, training more than 120 market executives to serve as paralegals.

    Their role is to offer support to survivors of domestic violence. Additionally, the Ministry has completed the initial review phase of the Domestic Violence Act, 732 (2007), its Legislative Instrument, and the National Domestic Violence Policy, preparing for redrafting.

    Madam Lariba Zuweira Abudu, the Minister for the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, shared these developments during the launch of a 16-day campaign against gender-based violence. The campaign kicked off with a walk through the principal street of Tamale.

    Madam Zuweira Abudu urged families and corporate organizations to take proactive measures, including gender-sensitive policy formulation, empowerment opportunities, and transformative actions, to prevent violence against women and girls. She emphasized the pressing global concern about violence targeting women and girls, emphasizing the need for investments in preventive measures.

    Expressing gratitude to all partners for their technical and financial support, Madam Lariba highlighted the importance of collaborative efforts to combat injustices against all genders, particularly women and girls. Dr. Wilfred Ochan, the UNFPA Ghana Representative, underscored the significance of breaking the silence on gender-based violence against young girls to enable them to reach their full potential.

    Ghana’s development partners reiterated their commitment to supporting the country’s efforts to end all forms of gender-based violence.

  • Ghana has made strides in prosecuting human trafficking – Gender Ministry claims

    Ghana has made strides in prosecuting human trafficking – Gender Ministry claims

    Member of the Human Trafficking Management Board at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Professor Angela Ofori-Atta, has affirmed that Ghana has experienced consistent advancements in combating Human Trafficking.

    The Clinical Psychologist, during the commemoration of the World Day Against Trafficking in Person (Blue Day), noted that the progress made in fighting transnational crime included the rescuing of victims, training more law enforcement officials and stakeholders on how to deal with cases of Human Trafficking, arrest of perpetrators, convictions, and jail terms.

    “There has been significant improvement over the past five years in terms of prosecutions, in 2013 and 2016 we had a total of two convictions each,” she said.

    However, from 2017 to date, the number of cases reported is 803 with 797 investigated by the Anti-human trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police and Ghana Immigration Services.

    During the same reporting periods, a total of 221 of these cases were prosecuted, 210 individuals have been convicted and sentenced for human trafficking-related offences,” She said.

    Madam Ofori-Atta attributed the results to the various legislations, legal instruments, and plan of action that the country had crafted and enacted over the years.

    These legislations are the Human Trafficking Act 694 of 2005 and the Human Trafficking Prohibition Regulations of 2015 (LI 2219).

    “With regards to legislation, Ghana has enacted the Human Trafficking Act 694 of 2005 and the Human Trafficking Prohibition Regulations of 2015 and the Ministry has also developed the National Plan of Action from 2022-2026. supporting the effective implementation of Act 694,” she added.

    Prof Ofori-Atta said despite the successes chalked, some challenges were faced in the fight against human trafficking.

    She said to reduce the menace, the Ministry has further trained some 798 law-enforcement officers, 230 Journalists in Accra and beyond, 104 social workers to help deal with the menace.

    Mrs Lariba Zuweira Abudu, the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, lauded the significant rise in the prosecution of cases particularly that of child trafficking.

    She said the feat had put Ghana on tier two global ranking, saying this showed the Government’s efforts and commitment to end human trafficking.

    “It shows how we have demonstrated commitment to fight against human trafficking, yielding greater results in the number of prosecutions gained and the number of victims rescued,” she said.

    In 2022, a total number of 108 cases were reported and investigated by our law enforcement officials, 31 cases were prosecuted involving 57 individuals, 37 convictions cases of human trafficking with 10 cases for child labour and 10 for other related offences.

    The Minister advised NGOs and activists to follow standard operating procedures and protocols to fight Human trafficking.

  • School feeding caterers call off strike

    School feeding caterers call off strike

    Caterers of the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) have suspended their intended nationwide strike action.

    National President of the GSFP, Mrs Charlotte Ashiakie Asante made this known at a press conference.

    She apologised to all affected schools for the inconveniences over the period during which caterers were not working.

    But Mrs Asante said they still stand by their earlier demand for an increment in the amount allotted to every child.

    “We still stand by our earlier demand that the government would facilitate the necessary processes to still increase the amount from the proposed GH¢1.20 to GH¢3, considering the prevailing cost of items on the market,” she added.

    Mrs Asante also urged the caterers to work effectively and efficiently when school resumed.

    Again, she reminded the caterers that the programme had only one association acknowledged by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and the national secretariat for which reason they were to remain united and have a common goal.

    “The National Executive would like to strongly admonish all caterers to henceforth desist from spreading falsehood and using the media for wrong purposes or as a tool to denigrate the programme, instead of using dialogue and the acceptable rules of engagement,” she added.

    More so, Mrs Ashiakle requested that the gender ministry engaged with the caterers to bridge gaps within the programme.

    The caterers of the GSFP across the country have been on strike over demands for better conditions of service and the increment in amount spent on feeding school kids.

  • Gender Ministry commends court for convicting 2 child traffickers

    The Human Trafficking Secretariat (HTS) of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) has commended an Accra Circuit Court for convicting Elizabeth Arthur Adjei (Mama Lizzy), the Proprietress of God’s Kids Orphanage at Kasoa, and Daniel Opare Asiedu, a lawyer, of child trafficking.

    The acting Head of the secretariat, Sena Owusu-Gibson, in a statement, said human trafficking was considered a highly organised crime and was one of the global blights which affected all races. The action of the court was, therefore, well timed and well judged.

    The two were convicted by an Accra Circuit Court for conspiracy to commit crime, to wit defrauding by false pretences contrary to Sections 23 (1) and 131 of the Criminal Code 1960 (Act 29).

    They were sentenced to three years in hard labour, in addition to a fine of 1,000 penalty units (GH¢12,000) or serve additional two years in default.
    The two offenders were arrested and prosecuted by the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police Service, with support from the HTS of the MoGCSP.

    Complaint

    Per the facts of the case, Ms Adjei and Mr Asiedu acted together with a common purpose to commit crime, that is defrauding by false pretence.

    Both culprits succeeded in collecting money from a couple with the promise of transporting them and their one-and-half-year-old son to Canada for a job opportunity.

    The complainants were asked to pay an amount of GH¢5,000 to be used to procure passports and other travel documents, out of which GH¢4,000 was paid.

    Ms Adjei later informed the complainant that the documents were all ready but the complainant’s wife could not travel because she had become pregnant, so she could only travel after delivery.

    They also told the complainant that he could not travel after three days because there was a problem with his passport which must be worked on, but their son could travel because there was nothing wrong with his document, and that the white man to take them to Canada would go ahead with the boy.

    After months of persistence, the complainant was given a document which he gave to a friend, and after reading the document, the complainant was made to understand that his child had been adopted.

    The complainant reported the case to the Devtraco Police Station, after which the perpetrators were arrested, prosecuted and convicted for their crimes.

    Human trafficking

    Ms Owusu-Gibson said trafficking in persons was a global crime in International Law and Article 3(a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children defined trafficking in persons as “the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation”.

    She said Ghana was known to be a country of origin, transit and destination for people, especially women and children, subjected to trafficking in persons.

  • Gender Ministry condemns assault of toddler in video

    The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, has condemned the brutal assault of a toddler in a video gone viral on social media.

    A statement issued by the Public Affairs Unit of the Gender Ministry in Accra, said the one minute, nineteen seconds video portrayed a man severely molesting and beating a toddler under a tree.

    It said: “The Ministry on behalf of Government strongly condemns this cruel, inhumane and barbaric act meted out to the child.”

    The statement said the act, portrayed in the video was against the Children’s Act 1998 as well as the Criminal code of Ghana, which explicitly states that, “A person shall not subject a child to torture or any other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment including a cultural practice which dehumanizes or is injurious to the physical and mental well-being of a child.”

    It stated that the act was a clear violation of the law which was punishable.

    “We commend the Ghana Police Service and Child Rights International (CR) for launching a manhunt for the suspect in the matter and also staking a reward claim to any individual who will be able to provide information that leads to the arrest of the individual and rescue the child,” the statement said.

    The Ministry therefore appealed to the public to support the Police with any information relevant to the matter and the arrest of the man.

    “We finally urge citizens to be vigilant and continue to report individuals who engage in this unlawful act,” it said.

    The statement advised parents and guardians to correct their children with love and care when they made mistakes but not in a violent manner.

    “The General Public can reach the Ministry’s Helpline of Hope Call Centre on its toll -free number on 0800-800-800 or O800-900-900 for complaints and enquiries. Also, issues of sexual and gender-based violence can be reported to the Domestic Violence Call Centre Via toll free number 0800-111-222,” it said.

    Source: GNA

  • Alleged US$10k trip to US: Presidential staffer insults Facebook user

    Presidential staffer Charles Nii Teiko Tagoe has responded harshly to a Facebook user who accosted him over his alleged deportation from the United States of America in mid-September.

    Tagoe had on October 4, 2022, made a routine post about the government’s intervention in the health sector when the user by the name of Mo Barhama jumped into the comment section with his ‘attack.’

    “The $10000 you wasted on a plane ticket only to get deported could have been put to good use in this regard,” he responded to Tagoe’s post which was an artwork with a child and a caption that read: “The government through the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection has developed a strategic framework to end child marriage in Ghana,”

    A clearly unenthused staffer responded: “Mo Barhama I just went through your pictures and I won’t say anything again. Kwasiaaaaa saaa no. Internet has worried us paaaaa.”

    An unrepentant Mo Barhama will not back down, going ahead to share the purported boarding pass of Tagoe’s trip and a cedi conversion of US$10,000 while responding to other commenters who were defending the presidential staffer.

    One such defender by the name of IK Bonney was then asked by the presidential staffer to stop minding Barhama.

    “IK Bonney You have time to waste on this idiot? You paaaa. Hunger will continue to kill idiots like that. Don’t waste time and energy,” Tagoe replied.

    Charles Nii Teiko Tagoe was reported by The Herald Newspaper to have been deported from the United States in mid-September, hours after he arrived in the country.

    He has not denied making the trip but has flatly denied having been deported and threatened to sue the paper and its publisher Larry Dogbe.

    Dogbe has since published supposed flight details and dared Tagoe to follow through with his promise to sue.

  • LEAP to disburse Ghc54.7 million to beneficiaries

    A total of Ghc54.7 million is to be disbursed to 344,389 beneficiary households nationwide as social cash grants under the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) programme.

    The five-day disbursement, expected to start from Monday, is for the 77th and 78th cycles, meaning all beneficiary households constituting more than 1.5 million individuals — would receive double the regular bi-monthly grant.

    In view of this, one eligible member household would receive GHC 64.00; two eligible members, GHC 76.00; three eligible members, GHC 88.00 while a household with four and more eligible members would get GHC106.

    This was contained in a statement issued by the Head of LEAP Programme under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), Dr. Myles Ongoh, in Accra yesterday.

    LEAP is a social cash transfer programme for the poorest households in Ghana with the goals of reducing poverty by smoothening consumption and promoting human capital development.

    The category of persons who make a household eligible are orphan and vulnerable children (OVC); elderly (65 years+) without support; persons with severe disabilities who cannot work and very poor pregnant women and mothers with infants under one year.

    “The amount of money paid [through e-zwich] is not the same for all households benefiting from the Programme. The amount paid to a household is determined by the number of eligible household members,” the statement explained.

    The statement acknowledged the contribution of the Programme’s Development Partners and the staff of the Department of Social Welfare and Community Development and all community volunteers towards the implementation of the Programme across the country.

  • Gender Ministry winning fight against human trafficking – Minister

    A lot has been accomplished, according to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), in terms of the recovery and punishment of those involved in human trafficking and unauthorized immigration.

    The MoGCSP asserted that, the number of investigations increased from 87 in 2020 to 108 in 2021.

    Similarly to this, the overall prosecutions went from 13 to 22, while the total victims went from 587 to 831.

    This was disclosed last Wednesday by the MoGCSP’s designate minister, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, at the beginning of a three-day training session for law enforcement officials in Kumasi on counter-trafficking and irregular migration.

    Human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, trading or receipt of persons within and across national borders by the use of threats, force or other forms of coercion, abduction and fraud among others.

    Capacity building

    The three-day workshop was held in collaboration with Expertise France, with financial support from the European Union (EU) on the theme: “Combating human trafficking and irregular migration in Ghana”, and aimed at equipping officers to effectively implement the Human Traffic Act 2005 (Act 694).

    The beneficiaries, drawn from across the country, were trained in human rights issues, victim identification, rescue operation, victim protection, investigation, building dockets, among others, to bring them to speed on modern ways in handling human-trafficking issues.

    They were selected from the Ghana Revenue Authority-Customs Division, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana Immigration Service and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).

    Madam Abudu said the feats were made possible through regular education, law enforcement and awareness creation.

    Monitoring

    For his part, the Project Manager, Expertise France, Serge Akpalou, said throughout the year, monitoring visits were conducted across the country and its borders to understand the state of affairs on the menace and to effectively tackle the issue at hand.

    He said so far, over 375 officers had been trained and 80 other officers had also benefited from an advanced level training programme.

  • Fighting human trafficking successfully- Gender Minister

    The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) has revealed that a lot has been achieved in relation to the rescue and prosecution of offenders of human-trafficking and irregular migration.

    The number of investigations increased from 87 in 2020 to 108 in 2021.

    Similarly, the total number of prosecutions increased from 13 to 22, with the total number of victims increasing from 587 to 831.

    The Minister-designate of MoGCSP, Lariba Zuweira Abudu, announced this during the opening of a three-day capacity building programme for law enforcement agencies on counter-trafficking and irregular migration held in Kumasi last Wednesday.

    Human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, trading or receipt of persons within and across national borders by the use of threats, force or other forms of coercion, abduction and fraud among others.


     

    Capacity building

    The three-day workshop was held in collaboration with Expertise France, with financial support from the European Union (EU) on the theme: “Combating human trafficking and irregular migration in Ghana”, and aimed at equipping officers to effectively implement the Human Traffic Act 2005 (Act 694).

    The beneficiaries, drawn from across the country, were trained in human rights issues, victim identification, rescue operation, victim protection, investigation, building dockets, among others, to bring them to speed on modern ways in handling human-trafficking issues.

    They were selected from the Ghana Revenue Authority-Customs Division, the Ghana Police Service, the Ghana Immigration Service and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).

    Madam Abudu said the feats were made possible through regular education, law enforcement and awareness creation.

    Monitoring

    For his part, the Project Manager, Expertise France, Serge Akpalou, said throughout the year, monitoring visits were conducted across the country and its borders to understand the state of affairs on the menace and to effectively tackle the issue at hand.

    He said so far, over 375 officers had been trained and 80 other officers had also benefited from an advanced level training programme.

    Source: graphiconline

  • Ghana records increase in human trafficking

    The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection‘s Human Trafficking Secretariat has revealed that in 2021 there were 831 human trafficking victims in Ghana as opposed to 587 the year before.

    According to the Ministry, the number of prosecutions grew from 13 in 2020 as compared to 22 last year, while the number of investigations increased from 87 in 2020 to 108 in 2021.

    The sector Deputy Minister, Madam Lariba Zuleira Abudu, who was speaking at the commencement of a capacity-building training program at Fumesua, in the Ashanti Region’s Ejisu Municipality, said government’s aim is to end the problem.

    Human trafficking, she said, was a global canker, therefore, stakeholders ought to work together to identify and deal with the issue head-on.

    The three-day programme has been put together by the Ministry in collaboration with the European Union (EU) and Expertise France, an international agency, to deepen the knowledge of security agencies on human trafficking and irregular migration.

    It would discuss topics on human rights issues, victim identification, rescue operations, victim protection and investigations, amongst others.

    Madam Abudu, who is also the Minister-designate for Gender, Children and Social protection, said the training had been designed to equip the law enforcement agencies to effectively implement the Human Trafficking Act 2005 (Act 694).

    She indicated that a National Plan of Action had been launched to deal decisively with human trafficking issues in all their forms.

    The Plan, according to her, had been structured in a way to whip up public understanding of the complexity of human trafficking and irregular migration.

    This is expected to improve the detections, investigations and prosecutions of suspected human traffickers and smugglers.

    Mr. Serge Akpalou, an official of Expertise France, said the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic recession had further exacerbated human trafficking.

    Therefore, the French International Agency would not relent working with stakeholders to address the issue.

    Chief Superintendent Mike Baah, of the National Headquarters, Ghana Police Service, urged the participants to take the training programme seriously to reduce to the barest minimum the incidence of human trafficking.

  • Stop posting faces of rape victims Gender Ministry to media

    The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection has asked media houses to avoid exposing the identity of victims of rape and sexual violence.

    A statement issued by the Gender Ministry directed that the faces of victims should be covered or blurred to avoid re-traumatization and re-victimization of the victims.

    “The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection has observed with great concern the re-traumatization of the victim who survived alleged rape and assault in the hands of a robber whose manhood was bitten off as a result of continuous broadcasting of the issue and exposing her face by various media outlets. This will jeopardize her security, safety, and the psychosocial support being given to her by the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection.

    “In respect of her safety and healing processes, we kindly plead and request all media houses and social media outlets to stop the circulation, showing and exposing her face and identity.” the statement read.

    Background

    A robbery suspect had the shock of his life when his victim severed his manhood with her sharp teeth.

    Emmanuel Ankor, 23, was said to have asked the victim to lick his penis after raping her and taking some items and money from her room at gunpoint.

    The incident occurred at Abompe New Site, a suburb of Obuasi in the Ashanti Region.

    After forcibly inserting his penis into her mouth, the victim mustered courage and bit off the penis to the shock of Ankor, who retaliated by biting the back of the victim.

    He was arrested at the AngloGold Ashanti Hospital, where he had gone for treatment.

    Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr. Francis Asenso, told Journalists that the victim, who had also gone to the hospital for treatment after making a report to the police, spotted the suspect and alerted the security officials, who arrested him.

    He said the police, after visiting the crime scene, retrieved the severed penis and sent it to the hospital for preservation, while further investigation was ongoing.

    He said the suspect was on police guard at the hospital and would soon be arraigned to answer the charges.

    Source: Kasapa FM

  • Educate girl children for secured future – Deputy Gender Minister

    Freda Prempeh, the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Tano North constituency, has urged parents to give their girl children the best of education for a secured future.

    She said educating the girl children would help to control teenage pregnancy and domestic violence in the communities.

    Mrs Prempeh, also the Deputy Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, was speaking at a day’s meeting with queens to mark the International Day of the Girl-Child at Duayaw-Nkwanta in the Tano North Municipality of the Ahafo Region.

    The meeting aimed at deliberating on the challenges of the youth, particularly the girl children and how to overcome such challenges to help them to become responsible future citizens and leaders.

    Under the theme ”My Voice, Our Equal Future,” the event was organised by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and attended by queens drawn from the Tano North Constituency.

    Mrs Prempeh urged parents to be more responsible and conscious of the welfare of their children, particularly the girl children.

    The MP entreated parents and the public to recognise the value and wealth of girl children and to make sacrifices to help them to attain quality education to become good future leaders.

    She said parents must protect their girl children against all forms of domestic violence, child abuse, rape, defilement and early child marriage.

    Mrs Prempeh entreated queens to organise community durbars to sensitise the youth on reproductive health and sex education to become aware of the dangers of early pregnancy.

    She called on the youth to avoid unacceptable lifestyles and rather concentrate more seriously on their studies by being closer to their books.

    Mrs Prempeh appealed to the queens to vote massively to retain her as the MP in the constituency and the NPP government in power in the 2020 general elections for more development in their communities.

    Mr Faisal Bawa, the programmes officer for the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA), appealed to the queens to educate women in their communities to practice family planning of their choices to help control child birth.

    She said provisions had been made to support widows and the aged with basic needs such as health and food.

    Source: GNA

  • Government working on law to forbid people from lynching ‘witches’ – Gender Minister

    The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison, has revealed that government is working to enact a law that will forbid people from lynching alleged witches.

    According to her, the law is the only way that will help keep alleged witches safe from being attacked and beaten to death as being witnessed in some parts of the country.

    The Minister was speaking at the Meet the Press Series of the Information Ministry held in Accra to update Ghanaians on the progress made by her ministry.

    Madam Morrison noted that the fight against the lynching of alleged witches and stigma attached to it makes it very difficult to get over it thus the need for the law to help protect the victims as well.

    She added that parliament sent a team to some communities in the Northern part of the country to make an assessment on the way forward, she added that they are yet to present their report.

    Madam Morrison stressed that the witch camps have now become safe heavens for the victims and therefore, the ministry intends to renovate those camps to make it a better place for them to find comfort.

    Source: kingdomfmonline.com

  • Government delegation interacts with inmates of alleged witches

    A government delegation visited some alleged witches’ camps in the Northern Region to interact with inmates to ascertain their conditions of living.

    The move was to help seek the inputs of inmates in terms of what they wanted government to do for them to improve their lot.

    The delegation comprised Madam Cynthia Mamle Morrison, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, and Members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Gender, Children and Social Protection.

    The delegation visited the Gnani Witches Camp in the Yendi Municipality, where there were 133 female inmates, 88 male inmates and dozens of children, and the Kpatinga Witches Camp in Gushegu Municipality where there were 32 alleged witches and seven of their children.

    Some of the inmates told members of the delegation that they were wrongfully accused of witchcraft, tortured and sent away from their communities, where some of them had remained at the camps for more than a decade now.

    The ages of inmates at the camps ranged from 40 years to about 70 years.

    Mr Shei Alhassan, Tindana (Landlord) of the Gnani Witches Camp, who spoke on behalf of inmates, said they were engaged in farming activities but they usually ran out of food from June to July, every year, when their stocks ran dry.

    Mr Alhassan added that “They lie on the floor because they do not have mats. They do not have clothes to wear. They were on LEAP but their names were deleted from the programme in 2017. Many of them have had their NHIS subscriptions expired. There is only one private school from class one to six in the area and many of their children do not attend the school because they cannot pay the fees. Some inmates are very old and do not have relatives to take care of them.”

    He, therefore, appealed to government to put the inmates back on the LEAP, renew their NHIS subscriptions, absorb the private school in the area amongst other support packages to improve the conditions of the inmates.

    He spoke on whether or not to reintegrate the inmates to their original communities, saying while some inmates would be willing to be reintegrated, the challenge had been the fact that members of their original communities did not want them back.

    At the Kpatinga Witches Camp, similar challenges including the lack of toilet facilities and electricity at the camp were enumerated.

    Madam Morrison described the inmates as vulnerable, saying, government was looking at putting them into groups to engage in shea butter processing as well as support others with inputs to support their food production activities.

    She encouraged them to remain strong and have the assurance that the state was interested in creating safe haven for them.

    Dr Kojo Appiah-Kubi, Member of Parliament for Atwima-Kwanwoma and Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Gender, Children and Social Protection, said the Committee would submit a report on the state of the camps to Parliament for action to be taken regarding issues identified during the visit.

    Dr Appiah-Kubi spoke against human rights abuses meted out to people, especially vulnerable elderly women, who were wrongfully accused of witchcraft, advising communities noted for such acts to desist from the practice.

    The delegation presented some food packages to the inmates to support them.

    The Ghana News Agency also understands that the delegation will visit other alleged witches’ camps in the north before returning to Accra.

    Source: GNA

  • Stop politicizing ‘one hot meal’ for JHS students – Gender Minister

    Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Cynthia Mamle Morrison has condemned the politicization of the “One hot meal” being given to final year Junior High School (JHS) students and teachers.

    This follows a disturbing social media visual of a teacher asking final year students to say “4 More for Nana” before they are being served with food.

    Other posts depicts some food packs embossed with the pictures of President Akufo-Addo.

    In an interview with Kwaku Dawuro on Anopa Nkomo on Accra-based Kingdom FM, the Minister who expressed disappointment said, politicizing such national policies is inimicable to the object of intervention.

    She therefore urged persons involved in the act to desist from such activities.

    Responding to the same issue, the National Coordinator of School Feeding Programme, Gertrude Quashie stressed that the pictures circulating complaining about poor quality of food is a mere propaganda and falsehood to tarnish the image of the government.

    Further, she gave an assurance that the government will provide various Junior High School Students and Teachers with nutritious meals.

    Source: kingdomfmonline.com

  • Free hot meal for final year JHS students will be waakye, jollof, plain rice – Minister

    The Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection Mrs. Cynthia Mamle Morrison says the free hot meal per day for final-year Junior High School students would be managed under the School Feeding Programme.

    Speaking on Nyankonton Mu Nsem on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM she said the menu would include Jollof, Waakye, Plain Rice, and Vegetable Stew, Kontomire Stew with an egg.

    The Waakye she explained would be served twice a week.

    She added that with the schools that have already charged feeding fees, the Ministry is working with them so they will provide snacks for the students.

    She appealed to parents to support the efforts of the government in containing the virus.

    President Akufo-Addo in his 15th national address on Sunday said he has instructed the Gender Minister to provide free one hot meal to final year students preparing for their BECE.

    His directive he said was based on the fact that some of the students were going hungry because they had to comply with the safety protocols.

    He said: “As a result of reports I have recently received that some final year JHS students were going hungry, in complying with COVID-19 protocols, I have just instructed the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection to begin preparations to ensure that, as from 24th August up to 18th September, all five hundred and eighty-four thousand (584,000) final year JHS students, and one hundred and forty-six thousand (146,000) staff, both in public and private schools, be given one hot meal a day. This is to ensure full observance of the COVID-19 safety protocols.”

    Source: rainbowradioonline.com

  • Gender Ministry to pay LEAP beneficiaries through mobile money

    The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MGCSP) is considering paying the Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) beneficiaries through mobile money to ease the stress of receiving their cash.

    Mrs Cynthia Mamle Morrison, the sector Minister made this known when she supervised payment to 120 LEAP beneficiaries at Nyakrom in the Agona West District of the Central Region.

    The beneficiaries who were given between GH¢64.00 to GH¢140.00 per month, received two months payment for June and July as a social intervention measure to reduce poverty in the country.

    The Minister said the rationale behind the decision to pay them through Mobile money was due to difficulties beneficiaries went through accessing their monies from the banks.

    Mrs Morrison said next payment would be done through mobile money and while the Ministry was against paying the monies into mobile accounts that were not for the beneficiaries, it was also not possible for the Ministry to provide every beneficiary with mobile phone.

    She assured that steps were being taken for the Ministry to reach out to all beneficiaries.

    The Minister stated that her Ministry was pursuing an aggressive policies and programmes to ensure that beneficiaries of LEAP continued to enjoy better life for it to reach out to other less privileged people in the Society.

    It was also considering giving vocational and technical training skills to LEAP beneficiaries for them to establish their own businesses to enable them become self-reliant.

    According to the Minister, discussions have gone far with development partners to look for startup capitals for the beneficiaries to embark on income generating ventures.

    The purpose, she noted, was to assist beneficiaries to improve on their living standards to pave the way for others to also enjoy the programme.

    Mrs Morrison said the Ministry would also start giving training on financial management and others by the newly established “Business Resources Center” (BRC) at Agona Swedru for sound management of finds.

    She said apart from management training, strategies were being put in place to enable the LEAP beneficiaries to form co-operatives with strong financial base to help manage their resources profitably.

    Source: GNA

  • Govt to house Kayayei during lockdown – Gender Minister

    Mrs. Cynthia Morrison, Ghana’s Gender Minister has announced that the government during the two weeks lockdown period will provide shelter for some head potters, often referred to as ‘kayayei’ in Accra and Kumasi.

    Speaking at a press briefing at the Ministry of Information, today April 1, 2020, the minister said about 1500 kayayei who sleep on the streets will be accommodated, provided food and water during the lockdown period.

    “Some of them have rented apartments and we have those who also live on the streets. We have visited some facilities where we think can accommodate our brothers and sisters on the streets and those without places of abode during the lockdown.

    We currently have 1500 kayayei to cater for. For those who have their apartment, we will find ways of sending logistics to them, to keep them away from coming to town. And for those that we are going to keep, there’s going to be enough food, water… We have corporate bodies cooking for like 6000…” she told the media, monitored by GhanaWeb.

    Meanwhile, over 30 women and children in two trucks en route the Northern Region were impounded at the checkpoint of a COVID- 19 joint security at Duampompo in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipality in the Ashanti Region.

    The driver had covered the trucks with tarpaulins to try and outsmart the security personnel stationed at the various checkpoints.

    Passengers on board the vehicles were mostly head porters who were travelling to the North East Region with their children.

    According to these women, when they heard of the lockdown, they decided to go to their hometowns because they have nowhere to sleep in the city.

     

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Coronavirus: Govt to announce plans for homeless today Gender Minister

    The Minister for Gender and Social Protection, Cynthia Morrison has hinted that government will today announce plans it has for homeless people during this period of partial lockdown.

    She indicated that this has delayed because they could not have worked with the current data available at the Ministry because most of the head porters and other homeless people in the capital cities locked down have left for their hometowns.

    She made this known when she spoke to Peace FM in an interview monitored by MyNewsGh.com.

    According to her, the Ministry has since last week picked up data and has finalized on the numbers and will in collaboration with the Information Ministry announce plans government has for such individuals.

    Agencies and bodies supporting this move by the government she added, will also announced when the Press is addressed today.

    Meanwhile, over a dozen of women and children in two trucks en route the Northern Region were impounded at the checkpoint of a COVID- 19 joint security at Duampompo in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipality in the Ashanti Region.

    The drivers had covered the trucks with tarpaulins to try and outsmart the security personnel stationed at the various checkpoints.

    Passengers on board the vehicles were mostly head porters who were travelling to the North East Region with their children.

    According to these women, when they heard of the lockdown, they decided to go to their hometowns because they have nowhere to sleep.

     

    Source: mynewsgh.com