The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGCSP) in collaboration with the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly has organized a day's community sensitization on how to end child marriage in the country.

The event was on the theme: "Preventing Child Marriage, the role of opinion leaders and the Assembly," with the aim of bringing to bare the ramifications associated with early child marriage.

Mrs Juliana Abbey Quaye, Eastern Regional Director, Department of Gender stated that, Ghana was performing well in the sub-region with regards to ending child marriage, adding that, Ghana scored 19 per cent in the current survey as compared to other African countries within the sub region.

She explained that the figure could be marginally reduced when opinion leaders and state parastatals continued to intensify the campaign to end the child marriage.

Mrs Quaye said child marriage came in different forms; "it could be formal or informal once the person is not 18 years, it is unlawful".

She revealed that early child marriage contributed to increased gender-based violence within the various communities.

She said it was time parents took full responsibility of their children and provided their basic needs especially that of the girl child, saying, they could be lured by men and people who would take undue advantage of the innocent girls to sexually abuse them.

Such act could result in teenage pregnancy and other Sexually Transmitted
Diseases (STIs).

She noted that, child marriage when not dealt with, possess a lot of dangers to the child, which would affect the society and the country at large.

Mrs Quaye noted that it was unlawful for a child below the age of 18 to be forced into marriage and argued that it would affect the progress of the child academically.

She added that poverty could not be overlooked and called on the Municipal Assembly to create more job opportunities for the youth to tap in.

Mrs. Quaye charged the chiefs and opinion leaders to also promulgate policies and laws which would protect the teenagers especially the girls within the communities.

"Do not hesitate to report any form of child abuse to the appropriate authorities," she said.

The workshop was attended by Chiefs, Opinion and Religious Leaders, Assembly Members, National Commission for Civic Education, Ashaiman Municipal Health Directorate and some members of the public.