Mr James Baba Anabiga, the Speaker of the Upper West Regional Youth Parliament, has advised children against irresponsible use of digital technology, such as mobile phone, which could jeopardize their future.
He said the mobile phone was the common digital device that almost every girl could have access to, but that wrongful use of the device was inimical to their moral, academic and social development.
Mr Anabiga gave the advice at a digital technology training and mentorship programme for girls from selected communities in the Wa Municipality in Wa to mark the International Day of the Girl Child.
The training and mentorship event was christened: “DigiShe Clinic” and organised by the Community Aid for Rural Development (CARD) Ghana in partnership with Plan International Ghana under She Leads project.
A total of 37 in-school and out-of-school girls in the five project communities – Chegli, Chansah, Sagu, Kperisi and Nyagli – participated in the training.
The International Day of the Girl Child was instituted by the United Nations (UN) in 2011 to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world as well as the need to address those challenges, promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.
This year’s celebration on the theme: “Digital Generation: Our Generation”.
“Never in your life, take your nude pictures and send to a man in the name of love. That can be the end of your life. You cannot leave that relationship at will. The man will always threaten you that he will share them on social media if you dare quit,” Mr Anabiga explained.
Madam Leenat Abdul Rahaman, the Executive Director of CARD Ghana, said the training was to enable the girls to network, share ideas and improve on their education and trade as well as social movement.
She advised girls to use digital gadgets, especially mobile phones, to build social network and movement to engage in activities that could inure to their personal development.
Madam Abdul Rahaman added that her outfit was also aimed to mentor and guide the girls in their education as well as to encourage those out of school to return to school or engage in petty trading to earn a living.
“When you are on the internet you are not limited, but you have to limit yourself and be safe while on the internet, because there are a lot of social vices on the internet like scamming. So, you have to be very careful not to fall victim to any of them,” she admonished.
On her part, Madam Kunmogli Juliana, Programmes Associate and Women in Tech Lead at Yison Tech Hub, advised the girls to use their mobile phone for only useful purposes.
“Technology has made things easier for us, so I will urge you to use mobile phones, which is the common technology device, wisely and for academic purposes. You can use it to do research, watch tutorials on YouTube and download applications that you can use to do designs and other things,” she said.
