Mrs Assan made this known when she addressed a durbar of chiefs, parents, women’s organisations, Christians and Muslims among other stakeholders to mark the Central Regional International Women’s Day held at Nkum in Agona West.

She said the measures include cultural and traditional activities, quizzes, essay competitions and football games to arouse their awareness on the dangers of teenage pregnancy, drug abuse and other social vices, which could impede their efforts to climb higher the educational ladder.

Mrs Assan said the 2016 and 2017 figures on teenage pregnancy in the Municipality were outrageous and promised that everything possible would be done to reduce the menace.

The MCE said the Assembly was making efforts to sponsor four girls, every year, to pursue a midwifery course as part of the encouragement to ensure that they acquired skills to make them irrelevant to society.

She said to increase the participation of women in the district assembly concept to improve the local governance system, the Assembly had decided to sponsor more women to contest in next year’s elections.

Mrs Assan said out of a total number of 31 elected assembly members of the Agona West Municipal Assembly only five were women, hence the need  to support more women to contest.

She appealed to Parliament to speed up the passage of the Affirmative Action Bill, which provides more opportunity for women to take up certain positions in the various sectors of the economy.

Mrs Assan, however, asked husbands who beat their wives on the least provocation to stop the act, which is against the rights of women, adding that some women had met their untimely deaths due to beatings and maltreatment.

Mrs Thywill Eyra Kpe, the Central Regional Director of the Department of Gender, Children and Social Protection, commended six women who won the Parliamentary elections in 2016 representing 26 per cent.

She said women participation in local governance was low with the reduction of the 39 elected in the 2010 assembly elections to 29 in 2014 out of 570 assembly members.

She expressed concern about the continuing discrimination and violence against women and girls under the guise of culture and tradition and called for modification of those practices.

Okofo Katatkyi Nyakoh Eku X, Omanhene of Nyakrom Traditional Area, who chaired the function, said women were uniquely made by God and had been assigned special roles to ensure the growth of their families and the nation as a whole.

Other speakers were Ms Elisabeth Essel, the Agona West Municipal Director of Education and Madam Efuah Frempomaah, the 2004 National Best Farmer, who spoke as role models to inspire the young girls.