Beneficiary girls of WUZDA Ghana’s “Optimized After 24 Years – Policy Prioritization as a Factor” project, were provided a skill training in soap – making to increase their capacities as part of the girl child development drive.
The “Optimized After 24 Years – Policy Prioritization as a Factor” project, which is a scale – up of the “After 24 Years Before Marriage”, apart from helping improve both formal and informal education in girls in three MMDAs, seeks to enhance the potentials of the 100 beneficiary girls of the Prisons School Complex in all other skill potentials that they may have interests in.
The project saw the need to give the girls training in the production of liquid soap, due to the growing demand for soap during this COVID – pandemic.
All one hundred girls who are beneficiaries of the project were present for the training which took place on the premises of the Prisons School Complex, even though almost a half of these girls have completed the Junior High School and are either in the Senior High School, or are making preparations to join this year.
The objective of the project, as its title indicates, is to facilitate the grooming of the girl child until she is 24 years or more, before any marriage discussions begin; this will be after she has either completed school at the tertiary level, or has passed out of apprenticeship in a skill training, to allow for her to be on her own and not be a burden to a man in marriage.
This training in the production of liquid soap is one of the approaches the project is using to empower the girl child in line with the objective.
According to the Gender Desk Officer for WUZDA Ghana, Kaawie Felicia, the production of soap as a training was arrived at in the discussion with the team, from the demand of liquid soap by the school for hand washing, due to the COVID – 19 pandemic.
She said this was an approach to “kill two birds with one stone”, where the students on one hand learn how to prepare the liquid soap as an additional skill to their education, and be able to prepare the soap to support the schools hand washing from time to time, on the other hand.
Facilitator and trainer of the girls in the production of the liquid soap, Henry Gyacham said he was impressed by the turnout of the girls, which means they all have interest in the additional skills that the project seeks to augment their education.
He added that the level of attention the girls paid to the exercise during the training, showed that they will have the skill at their fingertips for a long time even if they do not practice.
The “Optimized After 24 Years – Policy Prioritization as a Factor” is a year project being implemented by WUZDA Ghana, with funding from Mundo Cooperante.
The project is running in three MMDAs; Tamale Metropolis, Sagnarigu Municipal and North East Gonja District.
WUZDA Ghana 