Ayeley and I screamed loudly. Ghana had just equalized with a goal in a match against USA. We were watching the 2014 World Cup on television in Accra, my home town.
I know only three things in football: the corner kick, the penalty and the goal. I only need to see the ball enter [...]]]>
Ayeley and I screamed loudly. Ghana had just equalized with a goal in a match against USA. We were watching the 2014 World Cup on television in Accra, my home town.
Wether it’s playing for the national football team or becoming a nurse, too many girls’ dreams are still stifled by poverty and early pregnancy. Credit: FIFA
I know only three things in football: the corner kick, the penalty and the goal. I only need to see the ball enter the net. But my friend Ayeley was screaming, kicking the table, yelling at the Black Stars (our national team of Ghanaian footballers) and telling them where to pass the ball.
The USA scored another goal. “2- 1? What?!” I was devastated, but Ayeley was furious. “I wish I were on the field!” she screamed. Then her anger turned into sadness. I realized why. She had once told me she wanted to be a footballer. Unfortunately, unplanned pregnancies killed that dream. At 21, she is a mother of two.
I live in an urban slum in Accra, Ghana’s capital, and the number of pregnant teenagers and young mothers in my community is appalling.
My friend Akua Dadzie had to drop out of school at age 14 after writing her final exam at junior high school (JHS). Her mum, a single mother, said her education was enough: “After all, not every girl in the community completed JHS,” she told Akua.
Akua wanted to be a nurse, but her mother, a small-scale trader, could not afford to pay fees for the next three years in senior high school and then nurses’ training school.
Akua found an older man who showed her more love than she had ever experienced. He told her how beautiful she was. He gave her money for her and her mum. Her mother encouraged her “to give what she has to get what she wants”.
When Akua became pregnant, the man started ignoring her. Desperate, Akua tried to kill herself: she ground bottles, mixed it with water and drank it. She landed in hospital with severe gastrointestinal problems but survived.
She could have died!
This made me think a lot about men who have sex with girls without using condoms. They could be infected with HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases, and they can get us infected and pregnant.
It is painful to think that poverty can push parents to neglect their children’s dreams. I was lucky because my parents did all they could, including selling their clothes, to keep me in school. I helped by working while schooling.
Many girls are not so lucky. According to the United Nations Population Fund, more than 100 million adolescents do not attend school, 16 million girls become mothers every year and almost 40 percent of the 6,800 daily new HIV infections are among young people.
As a young woman, I believe we can help reduce teen pregnancy, tackling it from different angles. Most importantly, parents and girls must fight for the girl’s dreams to become reality. If girls are given the opportunity to chase their dreams, teenage pregnancy, unsafe abortions and maternal deaths will decrease. So let’s help our girls score their dream GOALS in life.
Edith Asamani is a self-taught photographer, graphic designer, radio presenter and human rights activist, passionate about issues of women and youth, who wants to make the world a better place for young people. Her motto: “I live not for myself, but for others.”
Kingsley Obeng-Kyereh, then a producer with Curious Minds radio programmes, explained that we were [...]]]>
The Children and Youth in Broadcasting–Curious Minds programme has propelled youth issues in Ghana through the voices of young people. Credit: Mercedes Sayagues
Kingsley Obeng-Kyereh, then a producer with Curious Minds radio programmes, explained that we were joining other young people to demand our rights, and let children know they have rights and responsibilities.
It sounded great.
That had been a bad year for me. I was grieving the death of my beloved brother and my family was going through tough times. Often my parents could not pay my school fees and I would stay at home for weeks. When I went back to school, I lied I had been sick.
That day at GBC something clicked. Something good. I had found a new family! And ever since I walked into GBC, I have sacrificed sleep and leisure to create change in my community using radio.
Curious Minds
For 18 years, the Children and Youth in Broadcasting–Curious Minds programme has propelled youth issues in Ghana through the voices of young people.
One of my friends is presenter Binta Alhassan, 23. At age 10, Binta narrowly escaped being abducted to another country and married to a much older man. Relatives tried to kidnap her at school but the teachers stopped them.
Binta is a strong advocate for girls’ rights among her Muslim community. On air, she exposes the dangers of early marriage and pushes law enforcement agencies to protect the girls.
“I have felt it and I know it. Change cannot happen if we just keep quiet and watch”, Binta told me.
Like Binta, I feel happy knowing that the little I do is making great impact.
We do many programmes on HIV and AIDS. HIV prevalence in Ghana is not that high at 1.4 percent, but not to be ignored. Sometimes we discuss policies, sometimes people, or gender-specific problems.
For example, young women tell how their role as caregivers for family members sick with AIDS harmed their education and health. Our listeners call in with their real life stories; together we try to find solutions.
My journey with Curious Minds has not been easy.
I remember weird times when a radio technician would walk into the studio while we are live on air and chide us:
“Why are you children talking about family planning? How does it affect you? Discuss things for people your age!”.
We had to do very long and friendly explanations to stop being taken off air by angry technicians.
It was difficult to get permission to leave school to do radio. Although I tried hard to get good grades, my teachers perceived me as not serious.
In my final year in Junior High School, I got a caning on my buttocks from my French teacher because he had seen me doing advocacy on TV during exam week. The teachers expected us to be glued to the books during this period, doing no extracurricular activities. I had flouted their unspoken rules.
I can laugh at those experiences now. They were totally worthwhile!
Edith Asamani is a self-taught photographer, graphic designer, radio presenter and human rights activist, passionate about issues of women and youth, who wants to make the world a better place for young people. Her motto: “I live not for myself, but for others.”