Women in Apowa community benefit from a learning engagement in ICT

Takoradi-Ghana, March 15, GNA – Some women in the Apowa community in the Ahanta West Municipality, have benefited from a learning engagement, aimed at enhancing their knowledge in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) use, health, business and human rights.
The programme, which was organised by the Western Regional Coordinating Council (WRCC), in partnership with the Regional Department of Gender, was part of the ongoing activities to celebrate this year’s International Women’s Day.
The beneficiaries, made up of women and girls in the community, were educated on the application of the ICT space for learning and business, looking at both its good as well as its bad aspect through wrongful applications by the youths.
Other areas of their discussions were on sexual and reproductive health concerns and the need for females to aspire higher in their academic and social lives, to change the stereotypes and narratives concerning the prowess of women.
Ms Maribel Okine, the Acting Regional Director of the Department of Gender, thanked the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) for supporting the programme.
She said technology continued to play a major role in modern times and had immense potential for accelerating gender equality and women’s empowerment.
She stated that the world was evolving to become more digital, and “we must keep up the space and unleash the potential of women and girls to become active agents of change in this transformation”.
Mr. Charles Peprah, the Assistant Programmer at the WRCC, called on the women to monitor the usage of the internet space among their children, to avoid them falling into wrongful hands.
He said internet crime was on the increase, and cited instances where innocent persons had been lured into ritual killings, hence the need to educate both the young and old to be vigilant.
Mrs Amen Morrison, a Public Health Nurse, encouraged the women to be assertive on their rights to health, birth spacing, development and sexual rights, to ensure that they stayed strong for their families and the nation.
Ms Grace Howard, the Senior Project Officer from the Ghana Employment Agency, also encouraged the women to take advantage of the numerous interventions run by the Agency to better their lots.