A bootcamp training in computer coding for girls has been launched in the Upper West region.
As a part of the launch, a program dubbed “Girls Code Too,” will be held in the regional capital, Wa, from July 15 to August 15, 2019 and is aimed at equipping young girls with computer skills.
Registration for the training opened on July 1 and will end on July 15.
According to Board Chairman of New Generation for Africa Project (NGAP), the NGO organizing the program, Lawyer Emmanuel Dubik, when girls are given skills and introduced to opportunities, the current high incidence of teenage pregnancy in the area may be reduced.
“This is mainly to help young girls earn a skill and ultimately a source of income. Teenage pregnancy is prevalent in the Upper West Region. It is our expectation that with this program and many others, young ladies will be occupied and provided with opportunities for personal growth and the enlightenment that will come from there may be important in reducing teenage pregnancies,” Lawyer Mahama said.
The Upper West Region is also noted for the migration of its youth down south for greener pastures.
As a result, the program this time is targeted at JHS graduates, who may be idle at home and likely to face the temptation of migrating southwards.
Mr Mahama explained that the youth in the area “are also affected by rural-urban migration for a better life in the big cities. NGAP realizes that this affects mainly JHS leavers who are vulnerable and yearn to earn something hence they are easily preyed on and abused by unruly adults. Our main target group for this first edition is young girls who just completed JHS in June 2019 and are awaiting results.”
The organizers have said they hope to help the young girls acquire a marketable skill that will “enable them work and earn something for themselves as well as whip up their interest to continue their education in order to achieve more.”
NGAP is an NGO passionate about contributing its quota to improving education in rural areas of Ghana through the promotion of STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics] education among the youth.
The Ghana Education Service in the Wa Municipality and the Wa Central Assembly itself are partnering with the NGO to organize the bootcamp