The Member of Parliament for the Ablekuma North Constituency, Hon Sheila Bartels has encouraged young girls in the Darkuman community to take their education seriously.
She also stressed on the importance of vocational training as a substitute for traditional formal education, while emphasizing the merits of the TVET initiative and how the Zongo girl child can benefit from such.
Speaking as the special guest of honour at the second edition of its Zongo Girl Child Dialogue, the lawmaker said “If you look at the policies and programmes of the government especially in the field of education, you will realize that now the government is also stressing very hard on technical, vocational and engineering courses.
“…Today I’m also trying to encourage that those who believe that their strength is in the technical, vocational and engineering fields should also take advantage of the TVET opportunities”.
The event, held under the auspices of the Darkuman Zongo Youth Chief, Sarki Jibril Hassan Ballambalah II, last Saturday, 29 October 2022 in Accra on the theme: “The Zongo Child Has All It Takes”, brought together young girls drawn from in and around Darkuman including Fatimatu Bintu Rasul, Iyayideen, Hassaniya and Nujuumu Zamaan Islamic schools.
The young girls had the opportunity to listen and tap into the experiences of the speakers such as Ms Asana Issaka, the newly elected Deputy Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Weija Gbawe Constituency; Ms Naziha Amin Gombilla, the first valedictorian of the UPSA Law School; Hajia Nazifa Mohammed Abdulai, soft skills coach and CEO of Casa Tomato Restaurant; and Ms Habiba Sinare, a film maker.
The speakers took turns to motivate and empower young girls to become better versions of themselves. The speakers spoke on diverse issues centered on the development of the model Zongo girl-child such as personal branding, determination, consistency, the God factor, respect and mentorship among others.
Speaking at the event, Sarki Jibril Hassan Ballambalah underscored the need for such women empowerment initiatives, especially in our Zongo communities.
He indicated that such programmes are necessary to change the stereotype and demeaning narrative attached to the Zongo, especially regarding women.
“We want to build great momentum, governments, individuals, non-governmental organizations, and a diverse range of stakeholders from both the private sector and civil society must collaborate in a more coordinated and integrated way,” he added.
The Zongo Girl Child Dialogue is one of the flagship youth development initiatives championed by the Office of the Darkuman Zongo Youth Chief.
The initiative, introduced last year, saw the likes of renowned entrepreneur, Fatimatu Zahra Hassan (Jadore); Fashion designer and Creative director at ZaQi Enclothe, Zaliatu Kassim; Broadcaster, Ayisha Yakubu and Marketing Executive and humanitarian, Kuburah Diamonds.
Source: bainamultimedia.com/Suad Yakubu
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