Government urged to assist private vocational Institutions

Mankessim (C/R), Feb 04, GNA - An NGO director has appealed to the government to offer financial support to private vocational institutions in the country to acquire equipment and materials needed for the training of the youth.

Bishop Okanto Davies, the Executive Director of the Charity Brotherhood Youth Organization, an NGO based in Mankessim, made the appeal at a one-day workshop on HIV/AIDS organized for 30 craftsmen and women at Mankessim in the Central Region.

Hairdressers, barbers and dressmakers drawn from seven communities in the Ekumfi area of the Mfantseman District attended the workshop on the theme, "integrating Sexually Transmitted Infections and HIV/AIDS into Vocational training".

Some of the topics treated were causes and prevention of HIV/AIDS, mode of transmission risk behaviours as well as care and support for People Living with HIV/AIDS.

Addressing the participants Bishop Okanto Davies advised the youth to concentrate on their vocations, and abstain from pre-marital sex, to avoid contracting the disease. He expressed dissatisfaction about the alarming rate at which the disease was increasing in the Central Region and called for concerted efforts from all the stakeholders to reverse the situation. Miss Mary Anane, a Principal Community Health Midwife at the Saltpond Government Hospital, appealed to the participants to lead descent lives.