Plan Ghana unveils Young Voices Project

Accra, Sept. 20, GNA - Plan Ghana has unveiled its € 550, 000 Young Voices Project, which aims at helping to   reduce   maternal mortality in Ghana by empowering children, the youth and communities to hold the government and other stakeholders accountable.

The Young Project, being funded by the European Union, is on theme 'Enhancing Transformative Change, Good Governance and Accountability in Maternal Health Delivery'.

It seeks to resource children, the youth and communities to engage in collective action from community to national level to get the government and other duty bearers to respect, protect, and fulfill their rights.

The Project would be implemented over 36 months in six districts in Ghana - Mfantseman and Abura Asebu Kwamankese in the Central Region, the Yilo Krobo and Upper Manya Krobo in the Eastern Region, and the Sissala West and Wa West in the Upper West Region.

Plan Ghana is working in partnership with the Ghana Health Service, ISODEC, Prolink and Youth Action On Reproductive Order (YARO) to implement the project.

Mr Prem Shukla, Plan Ghana Country Director, said at the launch of the project in Accra, on Friday, that the project would empower young men and women in six districts in the rural areas of Ghana to hold district assembly members and health service providers accountable for effective sexual and reproductive healthcare service and delivery, including maternal healthcare.

The Country Director said: 'Indeed, the Young Voices Project comes in to crucially complement our effort in reducing maternal mortality in Ghana and contribute towards the nation's effort in achieving its Millennium Development Goal target of 185 deaths per 100, 000 live births by 2015.'

He commended the European Commission for being a strategic partner of Plan Ghana since 2010, and lauded it for its enormous contribution and support to the development of the country.

'We are confident that our long standing and multifaceted relationship will continue and be strengthened in the coming years for the benefit of children, families and communities,' he said.

He said quality health was one of the major interventions areas of Plan Ghana's Programmes, explaining that various strategic projects had been implemented at the grassroots levels in this regard to target marginalized and excluded populations.

This, he said, would ensure that children and their families, who were their primary focus, were able to access their rights to quality healthcare.

He said one such intervention, which was being implemented by Plan Ghana was the 'Women and Their Children's Health' (WATCH) project. It was targeted at improving Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health for underserved populations in six districts in the Eastern and Volta Regions.

Mr Wisdom Gidisu, Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, said health was wealth, and a healthy nation was a wealthy nation.

Therefore, he said, Parliament would ensure that funds meant for the health sector were released on time.

He urged health professionals to treat children and young adults very well so that they would be willing to approach health facilities with their reproductive problems.

Mr Joseph B. Allan, Programme Officer of the European Union Delegation, said visibility was important in the execution of the Union's funded projects, adding that the European Union is in Ghana to help reduce poverty.

He said there was the need for all stakeholders to double their efforts to enable Ghana to attain a full middle income status.

Mrs Margaret O. Adufu, Deputy Director Nursing Services, Eastern Region Public Health Directorate, lauded Plan Ghana for the Young Voices Project initiative, which she said, would go a long way to benefit the implementing communities.

She said maternal health was one of the key challenges facing the country.

GNA