All posts by : manager

Inspire Today, four others mark Girl Child Day with 6,000 girls in Yilo Krobo

Inspire Today, an NGO known for championing the course of girls in deprived communities by providing them with  sanitary pads, other personal hygiene items, and educational materials, has marked this year’s International Day of the Girl Child with a little of six thousand girls in Yilo Krobo.

The NGO teamed up with four other institutions, Wilmar Africa, CouldYou, Step Publishers, and Elpis Children’s Foundation to extend support to these vulnerable girls in the Yilo Krobo Municipality of the Eastern Region of Ghana.

The Yilo Krobo community over the past years continues to record high cases of teenage pregnancies, and child marriages largely due to lack of education and poverty.

There are also recorded cases of parental neglect, poor supervision, sexual harassment, and late enrolment of girls in school just to mention a few.The partnership between Inspire Today and the rest of the organizations helped the girls to receive education on girls’ rights and the potential to become influential when you take your lessons seriously.

The girls from 15 different clusters of schools were given sanitary  pads, bathing soap and washing detergent, shaving sticks, deodorants, and reading materials.

CouldYou, an international non-governmental organization dedicated to curating, proving, and scaling sustainable solutions to period poverty and malaria, donated 500 menstrual cups to girls in Yilo Krobo Senior High School.

This is aimed at finding a sustainable menstrual hygiene practice, one that does not require investing in monthly pads. The CouldYou menstrual cup is a menstrual absorbent that can be used for 5-10 years and therefore produces significantly less waste than other MHH materials.

While cups require water for boiling, they need far less than reusable pads or cloths. The cup allows its user to safely handle menstruation without reoccurring costs for many years.

Close to one thousand teenage girls in Ayensuano, a cocoa-growing District in Suhum in the Eastern Region of Ghana have received support to mark world day against child labor.

International Cocoa Initiative, a non-profit foundation that works to protect the rights of children and adults in cocoa growing areas in West Africa partnered with an NGO, Inspire Today, to make this possible.

Founder and Executive Director for Inspire Today, Etornam Sey, noted that poverty is one of the major reasons for child labour as parents, in order to meet the needs of the family, allow their children to join them on the field instead of being in school.

“For us, our focus is the girls. We want to ensure that nothing keeps them away from the classroom. We have noticed that the lack of money to buy these pads compound the issues of child labour as young girls are made to work in order to be able to afford the sanitary pads. Although significant strides have been taken in reducing child labour over time, recent years have seen global trends reverse, underscoring the pressing need to unite efforts in expediting actions to eradicate child labour in all its manifestations. Today, we are standing side by side with a global movement to end child labour calling on all leaders to bring children out of harms way and back to their family.’ She added

The partnership between the two institutions will among other things enhance the potential for a coordinated, impactful effort to raise awareness, advocate for policy changes, and work towards eradicating child labour in Ghana, especially in Cocoa growing areas.

This year’s World Day will focus on celebrating the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (1999, No. 182). It also presents an opportunity to remind all stakeholders to improve their implementation of the two fundamental Conventions on child labour – Convention No. 182 and Convention No. 138 concerning the Minimum Age for Admission to Employment or Work (1973).

With the adoption of Sustainable Development Goal Target 8.7, the international community made a commitment to the elimination of child labour in all its forms by 2025.

Young girls in deprived communities in Ghana face a high level of unhygienic conditions monthly when they undergo their monthly cycle.  Unable to secure basic sanitary towels to properly handle their hygienic needs, they resort to the use of unhygienic substances that expose them to serious health hazards, hopelessness, and embarrassment.  They encounter immorality in the process in addition to the inclination to abandon schooling and take to the streets. The result is a large percentage of school dropouts in the deprived communities.

We, Inspire Today, and our partners, have adopted a two-prong outreach towards ministering to them.  First, we reach out with practical helps by providing the much-needed health and sanitary materials to help these vulnerable girls deal with their peculiar conditions.  We do this by visiting their communities and schools to meet them.  They come to our rallies in their numbers, between 2,000 and 10,000 per gathering, and we hold several such gatherings in a year. This gives us the opportunity to present talks, symposia, question-time, and other interactive seminars and plenary sessions to feed their minds to motivate them and encourage them to pursue lifestyles that benefit them physically, morally, socially, mentally, and spiritually.  

In the second prong, the large number of these young girls provides a ripe opportunity to extend our ministry to such deprived group of people with published words of hope.  In our ministry, every time we identify such specialized people’s groups with specific problems and needs, we seek to develop a publishing program to reach out to them.  This is because we believe and subscribe to the power of the written and published words to bring hope and new life to readers. 

Our engagements with these vulnerable girls open the door to reach them, and while it is good for their hygienic welfare, the Christian literature will feed their minds with rich biblical contents and godly truths that will continue to impact their life for a long time. 

Hope for Girls is a lifeline literature that contains stories, feature articles, and devotionals for the reading and study benefits of girls.  The format of this magazine is colourful souvenir publication full of pictures and illustrations to make it inviting to read, love it, and to possess it as a keepsake item.  The content in English is simple, making it possible for those with limited primary and junior high school education to read and understand its content.

Hope for Girls is aimed at delivering precisely what the title assures—namely, to provide encouragement and hope times especially for vulnerable young girls.  With this publication, we can reach more people in addition to what we can do physically.

What are the needs or opportunities that this Book will address?

Girls in our rural and even urban communities face dire challenges that affect them socially, morally, physically, and spiritually.  They are often discriminated against in the family and society when it comes to their education.  In traditional societies, many girls are forced out of school to be married, and some don’t go to school at all.  To escape these discrimination and deprivation, they abandon home in order to make a living in towns and cities—only to encounter even harsher life conditions.  Due to the harsh deprivation they encounter, thousands of these girls are forced to resort to unusual and dangerous approaches towards alleviating their challenges.  

Their plight includes becoming school dropout, child labourers, way-warders, shoplifters, and child prostitutes.  Without practical and sustainable help, many of these girls continue in their hopeless circumstances, which negatively affect their current education and future life.  In some cases, overwhelmed by continuous deprivation and hopelessness, they also develop suicidal tendencies.  

Expected impact

We call this project “Hope for Girls” precisely because that is what we anticipate will impact the young girls we are reaching.  Thus:

1. Because this sanitary and hygienic challenges burden girls in deprived communities in the country, the matter has become a national discussion where the government is urged to make the deplorable situation a national crisis.  Our efforts, therefore, would be a fitting contribution for the development young girls in the country. 
2. The vulnerable girls will develop a hopeful expectation and replace their despair and despondency with hope in the Lord;
3. They will understand that their bodies are the temple of the Lord and should be kept chaste for God’s glory and for their own benefit.
4. As a result, they will know how living their life on biblical principles helps them maintain a balanced life.

How can these results be sustained for long-term impact?

The hope the girls will derive from this literature outreach will live with them for a life-time.  As they connect with the content of the magazine and register their membership in church, they will receive spiritual nurturing that will go a long way to sustain them.  Our outreach include helping the girls to realise the importance of Christian literature

Objectives:

1. To direct the attention of the girls to the Lord through the Christian literature we offer them in order to help them to benefit from the content.
2. To enable deprived young girls have hope that should replace the despair they face as a result of their deprivation.
3. Ultimately, we anticipate that this literature outreach will lead the girls to Christ for salvation and thereby help them live the Christian life that gives them a positive outlook on life.

This gives us the opportunity to present talks, symposia, question-time, and other interactive seminars and plenary sessions to feed their minds to motivate them and encourage them to pursue lifestyles that benefit them physically, morally, socially, mentally, and spiritually.

Our engagements with these vulnerable girls open the door to reach them, and while it is good for their hygienic welfare, the Christian literature will feed their minds with rich biblical contents and godly truths that will continue to impact their life for a long time.

Why We Need Support for Mentorship & Counseling Sessions

1. Emotional and Psychological Support: Many teenage girls face emotional and psychological challenges stemming from societal pressures, family issues, or trauma. Professional counselling helps them cope with stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, and other issues that may hinder their growth and success.
2. Guidance for Personal Development: Mentorship offers the opportunity for girls to receive guidance from role models, helping them set educational and career goals, build confidence, and improve decision-making skills. This support fosters positive behaviour change and encourages them to stay focused on their future.
3. Breaking Cycles of Poverty: Counselling and mentorship provide the tools needed to help girls overcome barriers such as teenage pregnancies and early marriages, thus reducing dropout rates and promoting educational attainment. This creates long-term social change, as educated girls are more likely to break the cycle of poverty.
4. Creating Safe Spaces for Open Dialogue: These sessions provide a safe and supportive environment for girls to express their concerns and challenges, where they can discuss sensitive topics without fear of judgment, leading to healthier and more informed decision-making.
5. Empowering Girls to Make Informed Decisions: Providing mentorship and counseling enables girls to better understand their rights, health, and choices, empowering them to make informed decisions that will shape their futures positively.

What Will Be Needed to Organize These Sessions (Financial Support Requirements)

1. Professional Counselors and Mentors:
   • Fees for hiring qualified counsellors and experienced mentors who can guide and provide psychological support to the girls.
   • Payment for transportation and accommodation for mentors/counsellors if they are traveling from other regions.
2. Venue Rental:
   • Renting appropriate spaces for conducting mentorship and counselling sessions in a safe and private environment, which encourages open communication.
3. Materials and Resources:
   • Stationery: Notebooks, pens, and printed materials to facilitate discussions and note-taking.
   • Workbooks or Educational Handouts: Informational materials that address topics like mental health, self-esteem, decision-making, reproductive health, and other relevant subjects.
   • Digital Tools: For virtual sessions, there may be costs related to platforms, internet access, or devices (laptops/tablets) for remote engagement.
4. Logistics and Transportation:
   • Transportation costs for bringing girls from various locations to the venue if the sessions are not held in their immediate area.
   • Meal Provision: If the sessions last for several hours, providing snacks or meals may be necessary for the girls to stay engaged and comfortable.
5. Event Organization:
   • Event Planning and Coordination: Administrative costs associated with planning and executing the sessions, including registration, coordination of speakers, and organizing activities.
   • Volunteers: If volunteers are involved, there may be costs for training them and compensating for their time (e.g., stipends).
6. Evaluation and Monitoring:
   • Costs for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the mentorship and counselling sessions, such as surveys, follow-up activities, and reports on outcomes.