It is again my pleasure to state that Female Genital Mutilation has been outlawed in Ghana as well as in some other African countries. Mr Chairman, though important laws have been promulgated or amended to mainstream gender in a number of African countries today, the institutional machinery established to oversee gender issues still remains weak. The lack of resources, both human and capital to effectively operate them continue to hinder progress. This is a challenge and we need the political will and at the same time make determined efforts to shift resources to support this area of our activities. Mr Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen, another concern is the issue of Adolescent Reproductive Health which, according to experts, is inadequately catered for in the Africa region.
Unsafe abortions are rampant among adolescent girls.
By the age of 16 or 17, a significant proportion of our girls would have aborted at least once. The negative health consequences of abortion are well known to all of us. We should not allow these tendencies to go unchecked in our societies. In Africa, the major mode of transmission of HIV is through unprotected sex. Thousands of able-bodied men and women are contracting the disease and are dying leaving a large number of orphans for others to cater for.