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Author Archives: Youth Speak Up
Press Release: PEACE BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER ELECTIONS 2016
TAMALE, Ghana – Elections have always been a transformative and reformatory characteristic of many politically balanced countries these days. It is a common phenomenon in many developed and even developing countries. It is a means of giving voice to the people, especially in democratic nations; the freedom to choose their own political leaders and to contribute in the decision making process of the country.
Ghana has been holding elections since 1992 when the country became democratic and has seen the highs and lows of this system. The country has come a long way transitioning from a previous military regime to a more autonomous one. Many at the time feared this transition as they believed it wasn’t going to be a smooth one without violence or even war. However, the nation stood strong and has long since overcome the pandemonium that once threatened the peaceful nature of the country.
Ghana has since then become the envy of many African countries due to its peaceful and stable nature, even during elections. This year, as elections draw nearer the entire nation is geared towards peace. Government in collaboration with the media has launched many TV and radio campaigns to spread the message of peace throughout the nation. The police have partnered with churches and community leaders to check crimes in their various communities. Some youth have also launched individual campaigns to speak out on peace. It is the hope of government that this message will resonate in the hearts and minds of Ghanaians even after the elections when the winner has been announced.
Also speaking on peace is MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, co-founder of Hopin Academy “Elections are as important as maintaining peace in the country, perhaps even less so than peace. When there is peace, there is development, there is growth and more importantly we attract the respect and admiration of other countries. It is our duty then to do all we can, all we must to uphold the integrity of our dear nation Ghana, as a hub of peace, tourism and development” He further expressed his feelings about youth involvement in elections this year. “There is a vast difference between elections four years ago and now. Now the youth have become more actively involved, we’re making sure our voices are being heard; we’re using social media and any medium possible to spread the message of peace. We won’t allow ourselves to be coerced by any political party into creating chaos during and after this year’s elections”. He further added that “Ghana is our home and there is no place like home, we will keep it safe and intact for next generations”
This year Hopin Academy and its partners; RUMNET, YEFL and Ghana Friends in Denmark have launched the Youth Speak UP project to speak out on many of these issues including peace before, during and after elections. The goal of this project is to promote active participation of youth in rural communities through the use of social media and digital tools. The project focuses mainly on youth in some four deprived districts of Tamale, Northern Ghana; Kumbungu, Savelugu, Saboba and Karaga. Youth Speak Up will be holding both offline and online discussions on how maintain peace before, during and after the election in the identified districts. Discussions will be held on the premises of Hopin Academy in Tamale, Ghana, both online and offline discussions will be held concurrently on 26th November 2016. Follow discussions on twitter/facebook using the hashtag – #YouthSpeakUp
Hopin Academy is a social enterprise based in Tamale, Northern Ghana that provides a privatized and more alternate approach to the educational system in Ghana. It provides training to individuals and organizations that are interested in marketing, design, film, communications and entrepreneurial work. The academy has established academic partnerships with many international institutions including, Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College to bring to its students a more globalized and diversified approach to learning.
For further information please contact; MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, Co-founder, Hopin Academy, E-mail: maccarthylomotey@gmail.com Web: www.hopinacademy.org
Monitory & Evaluation
Great success stories . Our community journalist are truly and surely making the change in their various districts,
This week the team begun with our quarterly monitoring.
A few quarters past during the Youth Speak Up monitoring, At a point during the journey to four implementing district in the northern region we had to stop driving and continue with a bicycle to some communities. A few months down the line in the project.
Our community journalist through radio and new media communication skills, they have the capacity to persuade duty bearers to attend to issues of development and today some issues have been solved. from light, road, infrastructure etc. All they needed was the tools and capacity to use them then they will tell their own stories to the media.
Press Release: HOW ACCESSIBLE ARE EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE YOUTH
TAMALE, Ghana – issues of unemployment among the youth has been a major talking point in Ghana since the early 2000’s. A great many factors have been attributed to the cause of this malady. Many believe it is due to the global recession that hit the world from the early to the mid 2000’s, while others believe it is just due to rapid urbanization and changing world patterns.
Youth constitute about 19% of the entire population of Ghana which makes up a significant part of the country’s economy. However, as the youth populace in Ghana grow so does the increasing pressure on the country’s economy and resources. As more and more young people are moving to urban cities so are the number jobs available decreasing, making employment opportunities scarce and inaccessible to the masses.
Reporting on employment opportunities for youth in Ghana, the World Bank has revealed that about 48% of the youth in the country aged 15-24 years are unemployed. The report later suggested how difficult it was for youth between that age group to access jobs in Ghana. “In Ghana, youth are less likely than adults to be working: in 2012, about 52% of people aged 15-24 were employed (compared to about 90% for the 25-64 population), a third were in school, 14% were inactive and 4% were unemployed actively looking for job. Young women in the same age group are particularly disadvantaged and have much higher inactivity rates than men: 17% of young female are inactive as opposed to 11% of males.”
There have been claims by government that it has created more jobs and training opportunities for the youth, whether it is true or not, the question here is; is it accessible to young people between the above age group? Many employers have opined that potential employees do not possess the skills and experience required for a particular job. It is therefore recommended that government put in place the right educational systems and infrastructure to benefit students who have freshly come out of schools and colleges, equip young people with the relevant skill set needed by providing them with quality education.
Lead researcher and economist of the World Bank, Sarah Johansen feels that in order for the youth to access more jobs and employment opportunities in Ghana they must possess a solid educational foundation. “Ghana has been able to increase access to education. Now the issue is how to go to the next level and ensure that there is quality education. Because the skills you have at the end of secondary education is not maybe such a big problem, if you don’t have the labor market relevant skills; that you need to be able to acquire it. For that you need to have basic skills; so the question is have you learned those in school? And I think this is the issue that Ghana needs to be looking at now; so how can we make sure that people are prepared to learn more because what you learn in school is how you learn better. If you can’t read very well and not used to learning situation, you are not going to be able to pick up job technical skills either.”
“Governments come and go,” says MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy co-founder of Hopin Academy, “but it is up to us the youth to position ourselves academically and even socially in order to access or create more jobs”
This year Hopin Academy and its partners; RUMNET, YEFL and Ghana Friends in Denmark have launched the Youth Speak UP project to speak out on many of these issues including how accessible employment opportunities are for the youth. The goal of this project is to promote active participation of youth in rural communities through the use of social media and digital tools. The project focuses mainly on youth in some four deprived districts of Tamale, Northern Ghana; Kumbungu, Savelugu, Saboba and Karaga. Youth Speak Up will be holding both offline and online discussions on how accessible employment opportunities are for youth in the identified districts. Discussions will be held at the premises of Hopin Academy in Tamale, Ghana, both online and offline discussions will be held concurrently on 22nd October 2016. Follow discussions on twitter/facebook using the hashtag – #YouthSpeakUp
Hopin Academy is a social enterprise based in Tamale, Northern Ghana that provides a privatized and more alternate approach to the educational system in Ghana. It provides training to individuals and organizations that are interested in marketing, design, film, communications and entrepreneurial work. The academy has established academic partnerships with many international institutions including, Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College to bring to its students a more globalized and diversified approach to learning.
For further information please contact; MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, Co-founder, Hopin Academy, E-mail: maccarthylomotey@gmail.com Web: www.hopinacademy.org
Press Release: POOR PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS IN THE BECE EXAMINATIONS
HELPING IMPROVE EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE IN THE KARIGA, KUMBUNGU, SABOBA AND SAVELUGU DISTRICTS
TAMALE, Ghana – almost every year the Northern Region presents the second highest number of candidates after Greater Accra Region to sit for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE). However the number of candidates the region presents does not match their success rates at the exams. The region performs abysmally every year with some four districts; Savelugu, Kumbungu, Saboba, and Kariga at the very bottom.
The past five years has shown a general decline in performance of students at the Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE). This year is no different as provisional results from West African Educational Council (WAEC) indicate that less than 50% of the about 461,000 candidates presented made the pass mark. The reasons for this continuous under-performance remain glaringly obvious; candidates are usually unprepared by the time they have to sit for the exams, inadequate teaching and learning aids, truancy, teenage pregnancy among adolescent girls leading to absenteeism and high dropout rates, under-trained teachers in some public schools, poor monitoring and supervision of academic structures by school heads among others.
The Northern Region has constantly been in the news over depressing results achieved by their schools over the years. In 2013 for instance, news broke on the internet and other media houses about some schools in the Northern, Central and Upper East Regions scoring zero percent in the BECE. The Savelugu district placed 167th position out of 167 districts in Ghana at the time, the other districts; Kariga, Saboba, and Kumbungu followed respectively. These districts have been struggling to take top spots at the BECE since then as this year is no different.
This year Hopin Academy and its partners; RUMNET, YEFL and Ghana Friends in Denmark have launched the Youth Speak UP project to speak out against many of these social vices including the poor performance of students at the BECE. The goal of this project is to promote active participation of youth in rural communities through the use of social media and digital tools. The project focuses mainly on youth in some four deprived districts of Tamale, Northern Ghana; Kumbungu, Savelugu, Saboba and Karaga. Youth Speak Up will be holding both offline and online discussions on how to reduce poor performance of students at the BECE in the identified districts, and also find solutions to improve the academic lives of these students and to curb the growing menace. Discussions will be held on the premises of Hopin Academy in Tamale, Ghana, both online and offline discussions will be held concurrently on 24th September 2016. Follow discussions on twitter/facebook using the hashtag – #YouthSpeakUp
Hopin Academy is a social enterprise based in Tamale, Northern Ghana that provides a privatized and more alternate approach to the educational system in Ghana. It provides training to individuals and organizations that are interested in marketing, design, film, communications and entrepreneurial work. The academy has established academic partnerships with many international institutions including, Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College to bring to its students a more globalized and diversified approach to learning.
For further information please contact; MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, Co-founder, Hopin Academy, E-mail: maccarthylomotey@gmail.com Web: www.hopinacademy.org
Press Release: Teenage pregnancy
TEENAGE PREGNANCY: ILL OF DEVELOPMENT IN KARIGA, KUMBUNGU, SAVELUGU AND SABOBA
TAMALE, Ghana – increased rates of teenage pregnancy in the Kariga, Kumbungu, Savelugu and Saboba districts of the north have become a worrisome trend. It is one of the major hindrances to development in these four districts. Many young girls of school going age have neglected their studies due to this social menace.
According to statistics from the UNFPA and WHO, Africa has the highest rate of teenage pregnancy in the world. These include both married and unmarried teens ranging from ages 15 to 19.
In Ghana, statistics from the Ghana Health Service and the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection indicate that every year there’s a rise in cases of teenage pregnancy in the country. The year 2014 alone recorded 750,000 cases which comprised of teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19. The Upper East and Central Regions recorded the highest rates of this menace whilst the Northern Region recorded the lowest. However, there are some districts of the north; Saboba, Kumbungu, Kariga and Savelugu where the menace is rampant.
According to community journalists of the Hopin Academy, out of 177 pregnancy cases recorded at Saboba Hospital in May 2016, 107 were teenagers between the ages of 12 and 19. Many of these teenagers either die at childbirth, become school dropouts or single parents. Without help or even parental intervention they face a blurry future, their lives are put on hold, they’re faced with the dilemma of living in poverty and deprivation all their lives.
In most farming communities especially the north, women form more than half the population of farmers. More often than not they’re the ones their families and communities look up to when the farming season approaches. One can then say they’re the core drivers of the socio-economic development of the north. However many of these young girls die even before they reach adulthood or even before they reach their full potential.
“Yes a lot has been said and done by many governmental, non- governmental and news agencies in the country to curb this raging menace” says MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, co- founder of Hopin Academy. “But we have also seen the need as youth to add our voices to many other voices speaking out against this social ill. As future leaders we want to contribute in any small way to the development of our nation” And so this year Hopin Academy and its partners; RUMNET, YEFL and Ghana Friends in Denmark have launched the Youth Speak UP project to speak out against many of these social vices including the prevalence of teenage pregnancy in the north. The goal of this project is to promote active participation of youth in rural communities through the use of social media and digital tools in reporting. The project focuses mainly on youth in some four deprived districts of Tamale, Northern Ghana; Kumbungu, Savelugu, Saboba and Kariga. Youth Speak Up will be holding both offline and online discussions on how to curb teenage pregnancy in the identified districts. Both online and offline discussions will be held concurrently on 10th September 2016. Follow discussions on twitter/facebook using the hashtag – #YouthSpeakUp
Hopin Academy is a social enterprise based in Tamale, Northern Ghana that provides a privatized and more alternate approach to the educational system in Ghana. It provides training to individuals and organizations that are interested in marketing, design, film, communications and entrepreneurial work. The academy has established academic partnerships with many international institutions including, Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College to bring to its students a more globalized and diversified approach to learning.
For further information please contact; MacCarthy Mac-Gbathy, Co-founder, Hopin Academy, and E-mail: maccarthylomotey@gmail.com Web: www.hopinacademy.org
Upcoming Event!
GRAB YOUR TICKET NOW
Are you a Lover of Change? Join us on Saturday 10th September, as we brainstorm and discuss on the causes, effects and possible solutions to one of the menacing challenges in our society.
Topic: TEENAGE PREGNANCY: ILL OF DEVELOPMENT in Kariga, Kumbungu, Savelugu and Saboba
HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE
DATE: 10TH SEPTEMBER, 2016
TIME: 2:30PM-6:30PM
VENUE: HOPIN ACADEMY(YAAMUSA STOREY BUILDING THIRD FLOOR-ALONG THE WATER WORKS ROAD)
SIDE ATTRACTION:
SOFT LUNCH
FREE WIFI CONNECTION
MUSIC INTERLUDE
POETRY
COST IS FREE
For enquiry, call
024 046 6923
Book your seat now. Only 30 seats available.
Follow this link to register your name and download your ticket:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/youth-speak-up-tickets-27505836698
YOUTH SPEAK UP
Youth Speak Up is a platform focused on connecting and bringing together the best and brightest breed of young entrepreneurs in Ghana to speak out on socio-economic and developmental issues affecting the country.
The goal is to promote active participation of the youth, particularly those in rural communities through sensitization programs and the use of digital and social media tools. This initiative is led by young entrepreneur and co-founder of Hopin Academy, MacCarthy Lomotey to develop competencies of youth reporters in their various communities.
The project focuses mainly on youth in some four deprived districts of Tamale, Northern Ghana; Kumbungu, Savelugu, Saboba and Karaga. Youth in these areas have little to no access to internet and the world of social media and thus the pool of opportunities it offers. Most of them have no formal education at all, and more often than not find it difficult to express their frustrations and views on matters of development in their communities. The project therefore seeks to bridge this gap between the youth in these areas and their social needs. This will be done through training on how to use various media platforms in new and creative ways to address issues of injustices, advocate for their rights and report on their challenges and frustrations individually or as a community. It is a small step to begin a journey of empowering young people to explore their potential and transform their challenges into opportunities and opportunities into success stories.
To tackle some of the injustices and developmental issues that youth in the north face, the Youth Speak UP project has launched a four month long campaign, starting from 27th August 2016 and ending 26th November 2016 to create awareness and speak out against these issues. The campaign has been dubbed “The Idea Platform” An active group of social entrepreneurs and stakeholders will meet every two weeks from the start date to discuss and brainstorm solutions to selected topics. These topics are selected based on extensive research on matters of interest and concern to the youth in these deprived areas of the north.
Partners in the Youth Speak Up campaign are; Hopin Academy, RUMNET, YEFL and Ghana Friends in Denmark.
Press release
HOW YOUNG PEOPLE ARE SOLVING THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA.
VIOLENCEAGAINST WOMEN IN THE KARIGA, KUMBUNGU, SAVELUGU AND SABOBA DISTRICTS.
TAMALE, Ghana – Recent reports from community journalists of the Youth Speak Up Project in Northern Ghana, Tamale, clearly indicate the brutish way in which most of our women are being treated. These prejudices are particularly prevalent in the Kariga, Kumbungu, Savelugu, and Saboba districts.
Most of these reports tell the same story; our women are being subjected to harsh and inhumane conditions. They’re being raped and beaten, they’re victims of forced and early marriages, victims of physical and verbal abuse, they’re being over-burdened with duties of both man and wife by their husbands; they’re expected to do their wifely duties and still go plough the land to bring food for their household, and even they’re being accused of witchcraft by their fellow woman. “I was nearly beaten to death by my husband” one woman recounted. “He beat me and tore off all my clothes just because I did not bring him food on time. He did not care that there were people watching, he did not even care that it was a taboo to beat me on the farm” This was an incidence that occurred at Kumbungu and many other similar stories from the other districts…..Get full Story
Youth Speak Up Event Coming Up
ANNOUNCEMENT📢📢📢…!!! ANNOUNCEMENT📢📢..!!!
GRAB YOUR TICKETS NOW!! GRAB YOUR TICKETS NOW!!
Are you a lover of Change? If Yes…..
Come together and let’s dialogue with media partners and stakeholders both online and offline on issues hindering the development of Northern Region..
Grab your ticket before it’s too late. Remember that we are making room for thirty attendees.The event tickets are ready, 30 seats available. click on this link and get your tickets now.
( https://www.eventbrite.com/e/youth-speak-up-tickets-2710562… ).
*NB: Free drinks & Food 🍻🍹🍗* *&* *Free Wi-Fi connection😀📡*
*Topic* *VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN NORTHERN REGION*
*VENUE* *HOPIN ACADEMY OFFICE (WATER WORKS ROAD @ YAMUSAH STOREY BUILDING*THIRD FLOOR
*Date: Saturday August 27th 6pm-9pm*
*Contact: 0240711573*
Youth Speak Up Idea Platform 