ENCOURAGING EFFECTIVE PARENT- CHILD SEX EDUCATION COMMUNICATION. ( FINAL YEAR ONLINE NEWS PRODUCTION)

 

By Nana Ama Kyeremanteng - 3rd November, 2021

Accra

 In the Ghanaian traditional setting, discussions about sex and sexual activities are mostly regarded as taboo topics. These have become barriers in the provision of sex education by parents to their wards.

According to the statistics from the Ghana Health Service, about 15% of the Ghanaian teenage population is having sex by the age of 15. Over 13 thousand teenagers between the ages of 10 and 14 got pregnant within the past five years. And a total of 676 girls in the Volta Region alone got pregnant when schools were closed last year to curb the covid -19 pandemic.

Health Promotion Officer Robert Mensah believes the trend can be reversed with effective sex education especially from the home. He said adolescents become confused and naive at the puberty stage due to the changes in their bodies. That is the time parent have to talk to their children about reproductive health in order to prevent consequences when care is not taken.

Also, parents are the right source of information because they trust and believe in them. It is very helpful if the parent are opened to the children and vice versa, they always run to the parent for help relating to their reproductive health and sex life.

Health Promotion Officer, Robert Mensah

But with sex being a taboo topic in the traditional Ghanaian topic, some parents are having a tough time to provide their wards with the needed education on their sexuality. Some parent mentioned the following reasons; shyness, probability to influence others, eagerness to practice sex and the lack of knowledge on reproductive health and education to impart it into the lives of their children. 

Some few years ago government aborted plans to have a comprehensive sexuality education program in basic schools following an outrage over the content. But the controversy stirred by the CSE alerted some parents about the need to begin sex education from home to control what their wards know about their sexuality and what they practice.

A group against comprehensive sex education

A parent told NAFTI News that he has resorted to the use of a book titled "How to Talk With Your child about Sex”. He further stated that the book had increase his horizon about what he knew about sex and how to communicate with his children. According to him, this book stated that he should have an open relationship with his children to allow for free and truthful communication about sex and also refrain from giving nicknames to the reproductive health organs.

With the parent child communication on sex appearing complicated, Clinical Psychologist Abena Fosua said parents must not shy away from their responsibility in providing sex education by building a relationship based on trust and open communication.


It is certain that children who receive the needed sex education from home have the right mindset about sexuality, putting them in a better position to also make informed choices about their sexual behaviours.


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