Stop 368 Teen Girls in Ghana from Missing School

Some months after Rebecca, a 10 year old girl living at Bedabour in the Ashanti Region of Ghana lost her mother and older sibling this year, she started attending school in a tattered uniform and worn out sandals while showing signs of malnutrition. 

It was obvious she was lacking the basic necessities of life due to the absence of her mother and older sibling who used to provide her with her needs. 

Consequently, the Teen Girls Club of SHI in Ghana to which Rebecca’s late older sister, Jennifer, had been a member stepped in to support her after noticing the deterioration in the quality of her life in the aftermath of her mother’s death. 

“We believe we will not have lost Jennifer if her mother had not died since she would have provided her with enough care and support during the illness that led to her death and she would have still been alive today”, says Bridget Gyamfi, Project Officer of the Teen Girls Club.

The Teen Girls Club  provided Rebecca with a new school uniform, school bag, sandals, shoes and undergarments. The leaders of the club also linked her with a school teacher in her community through whom they provide her with money for school on a daily basis to augment what she receives from home. In addition, one of the local coordinators of the club has stepped  in to  counsel, support and  nurture her to help her overcome her grief to enable her to move forward in life. 

The Teen Girls Club has as its mandate to encourage girls to remain in school and achieve higher academic laurels by educating them on pertinent issues such as health and nutrition and the dangers of teenage pregnancy which can put their education and ambitions in jeopardy. It also provides members with economic skills to help them to earn an income.   

In addition, the club provides needy members with sanitary pads and other personal hygiene items, supplies their basic needs when they gain admission into a higher institution of learning and supports them when they are sick or hospitalized. 

The support being given to members of the club is also aimed at protecting the girls from unscrupulous men who may take advantage of their lack of access to material and psychological support and lure them into promiscuous relationships.

Thus, in reaching out to Rebecca, the Teen Girls Club is carrying out its mission of helping to keep girls in school by providing them with their basic needs, keeping them comfortable in school  and protecting them from being taken advantage of. 

According to UNICEF reports, as at 2015, 52 million children in Africa had lost one or both parents (Unicef Orphans)

“An early loss of parents usually increases the probability of inadequate child care and worsens the family’s economic status”, writes Pamela Li, in her article “How Does The Death of a Parent Affect a Child”.

“The psychological  effects of losing a mother or a father during formative years are significant. Children who experience parental loss are at a higher risk for many negative outcomes including mental issues (e.g. depression, anxiety, somatic complaints, post traumatic stress symptoms), shorter schooling, less academic success, lower self esteem and more sexual risk behavior”,  ( How Does The Death Of A Parent Affect A Child).

A research article published by BMC Palliative Care confirms the above notion. In a study that reviewed the effects of support programs for parentally bereaved children, it noted that “the death of a parent is a highly stressful life event for bereaved children. Several studies have shown an increased risk of mental ill health and psychosocial  problems among affected children.”

The article goes on to say “While children at this time are in significant need of support, the inverse can happen because of changes in the family situation and family roles post bereavement. In some cases, the children’s remaining parent / caregivers are struggling with their own grief and may experience psychological difficulties themselves. As a result, it can be a challenge for them to provide sufficient support for the children” (  When a parent dies – a systematic review of the effects of support programs for parentally bereaved children and their caregivers | BMC Palliative Care)

This gesture is bound to have a significant positive impact on Rebecca’s life since according to the study on the effects of support programs for parentally bereaved children, even “relatively brief interventions may help prevent children from developing more severe problems, such as mental health problems and traumatic grief after the death of a parent” (When a parent dies – a systematic review of the effects of support programs for parentally bereaved children and their caregivers | BMC Palliative Care)