Madam Matilda Chireh, the Upper West Regional Director of the Department of Children has observed that youth Parliament is a medium of advocacy affecting children for action from government and the necessary stakeholders.
She said children were faced with a myriad of challenges including; negative socio-cultural practices that militated against their holistic development, and that the youth Parliament could provide a platform for children empowerment to enable them speak-up against those practices.
Madam Chireh said this at the inauguration of the first sitting of the Upper West Regional Children Parliament in Wa on the theme: “Setting the Stage for Future Prospects”.
It was organised by Poli Kids, a youth-led organisation in the region, in partnership with the Department of Children with funding support from Plan International, Ghana.
The about two hour debate at the sitting centred on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), teenage pregnancy, child marriage and education.
“The children Parliament can serve as a solution to the constant neglect of children in decision making even with issues that affect them”, Madam Chireh indicated.
Referencing Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), she noted that children had the right to express their views on matters that affected their lives and for those views to be considered by the authorities saying, “The notion that children are seen and not heard has to be discouraged”.
The Director said her outfit was working to create a harmonious society for boys and girls, while ensuring that child protection, survival, participation and development were guaranteed.
Talking on the Child and Family Welfare Policy, she said it recognised children and young people as agents of change and encouraged them to actively participate in addressing issues of child protection.
Some Members of the House observed that FGM was outmoded and should be discarded as it was an outright abuse of the rights of the victim.
Others also called for conducive environment with the provision of the necessary learning materials for children at the various levels of education to learn.
Ms Zakia Ibrahim, the Speaker of the House, urged children to take up their responsibilities of being obedient to authorities.
“One thing we can do for our parents is to respect and obey them. It is our right to be cared for, yes it is, but it is our responsibility to be under authority, let us not create our own authority”, she added.
The Poli Kids launched the Upper West Regional Children Parliament in March 2020 to, among other things, build the capacity of children to prepare them for the mantle of leadership in the near future.
Source: Fiilafmonline/GNA
