As part of activities marking its 35th anniversary celebrations, ActionAid Ghana has held a peace conference calling on the youth to be ambassadors of peace. ActionAid Ghana, over the years, has worked with youth groups, women groups, and the vulnerable to promote human rights and foster sustainable development.
ActionAid with Young Urban Women’s Movement and Activista Ghana took a peace walk through the principal streets of Bolgatanga, advocating for peace in Bawku and in some Senior High Schools. They held placards with inscriptions such as “Peace is priceless, give peace a chance”, “No peace no development, so let’s embrace peace”.
The Programs Manager of ActionAid Ghana in the Upper East Region, Akuka Yakubu, in his welcome address, says the region is a proud one with rich in culture and resilience, yet cannot ignore the truth that the Upper East region sits at a fragile crossroads.
He added that internally, the region continues to grapple with pockets of tribal conflicts, land disputes, chieftaincy disputes, and school-related violence, to the ripple effects of insecurity in the Sahel, where violent activities in neighbouring Burkina Faso and Mali have displaced thousands, some of whom have crossed into our borders.
Mr. Akuka said Senior High Schools should be grounds for learning creativity, but in recent times, schools such as Bawku Senior High School, Bawku Technical Institute, Sirigu Senior High, Zuarungu Senior High, and Bolgatanga Technical Institute have experienced disturbances, which have dire consequences on students.
In a panel discussion, Francis Adatara, a representative of the Conference of Assisted Secondary schools and Headteacher of Gambibgo Senior High School, enumerated some causes of student unrest in the Senior High Schools as “cadet prefect relationship, long stay in schools, especially with single track school, the use of mobile phones and ethnic groupings”.
The President of Young Urban Women’s Movement, Dorcas Zoogah, and the Regional Organizer of Activista Ghana, Akurugu Rexford, presented a petition to President John Dramani Mahama through the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, calling on the government and stakeholders to bring lasting peace to Bawku and Senior High Schools in the region.
Poetry recitals and a drama were staged on peace building by Bolga Girls Senior High School and Bolgatanga Senior High School students. The theme for the conference was ‘peaceful communities, safe schools: The youth as ambassadors of peace.’ The conference brought together students, the National Peace Council, Young Urban Women Movement, Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary schools (CHASS), and the NCCE.
A1Radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Mercy Yamttot|Bolgatanga
