Accra,– The Caring Sisters of the Anlo Traditional Area, Tuesday, mobilized funds to give its school, the ‘Caring Sisters Vocational Institute’ in Tegbi, Volta Region, a facelift and make it more conducive for teaching and learning.
At the fund-raising ceremony in Accra, the Association was also re-launched to reenergize its union and refocus its activities.
Mrs Samira Bawumia, the wife of the Vice President, who graced the occasion as the Guest of Honour, said it was time to change the narrative where boys were given much attention when it came to education than girls.
She reiterated that the discrimination against women and girls must stop, adding that it was time for action and not words.
Women who lose their lives through child birth, victims of sexual and gender-based violence, and girls who were denied schooling because of their gender, needed the collective support of all to revive their lives, Mrs Bawumia said.
She, therefore, appealed to the public to support the Caring Sisters to enable them to unleash the potentials of young ones through vocational skills training, as empowering them benefitted society and the nation as a whole.
Ms Sese Gadzekpo, the President of the Association, said the Association remained deeply committed to complementing government’s efforts to extend vocational education to a wider student population in the region.
To this end, Caring Sisters recently donated computers, computer desks and printers to the school to ensure that the pupils had access to IT tools that could enable them to keep up with today’s world.
It also carried out some renovation works on the old vocational school and replaced its windows, appliances and paint work.
She said the Association would develop mentoring programmes and facilitate internships with successful companies as part of the training to allow the girls to obtain exposure and hands-on real work experience.
“Our larger vision includes positioning the school as one of the best, if not the best vocational training institution in Ghana, as well as leveraging the school as a platform to promote unique aspects of Anlo culture through the cuisine, language and crafts,” she added.
Ms Gadzekpo explained that formerly, the Institute was admitting only girls, however, it was now admitting both sexes from Tegbi and surrounding communities including Keta and Anloga and the entire country.
“We need funds to rehabilitate the existing block, reconstruct the boundary wall, floors, clean up the catering and dress making workshops, and equip them with the requisite equipment.
“The catering workshop needs to have refrigerators, cookers, cooking utensils, and other top-notch equipment,” she added.
Caring Sisters is a women’s not-for-profit organisation founded over 30 years ago with the objective to address the education of the girl child in the Anlo Traditional Area.
Its members mostly hail from the Anlo Traditional Area, and was founded under the leadership of Madame Barbara Sika Baeta of Flair Catering Services.
The Institute on the other hand, was established after the formation of the Association by the mothers of the current members of the Association and has currently trained more than 500 girls in catering and dress making.
Source: Ghana News Agency
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