"The time is now for adolescent girls to be assertive and confident and learn from their predecessors in order to break through glass ceilings and achieve greater things for yourselves and generations to come," a consultant, Dorothy Saah, said.

She added that girls must learn to be compassionate towards themselves, make judicious use of their time and be focused if they were to make it to the top.

The stakeholders were speaking at a durbar at the West Africa Senior High School (WASS) in Accra yesterday to commemorate the International Day for the Girl-Child (IDGC).

It was on the theme: "Our time is now, our rights, our future."

The event was attended by officials of the La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal Assembly, as well as those from various schools in the municipality.

Also present were the Madina-Adenta District Chairman of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Charles Yaw Adinkra, and the Director of the Ghana Congress on Evangelisation (GHACOE) Women's Ministry, Georgina Quaisie.

There were musical performances, drama and poetry recital by students.

Other speakers

Other speakers were the Gender Officer at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Patience Araba Mba; the Girl-Child Coordinator at the La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal Education Directorate, Adwoa Akyeneba Ampah, and the La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal Director of Education, Kean Adjei Appiah.

They all took turns to advise girls.

Ms Mba said girls could only earn their rights by being responsible and, therefore, urged them to leverage the opportunities given them.

"It is true that the challenges are there, but let us learn to live above them and work hard to achieve success.

"Sexual harassment is everywhere, and we need to talk about it because a child who is sexually harassed cannot concentrate in class. This is the time to open your mouth and talk about whatever is eating you up," she added.

For her part, Ms Ampah said although there had been an increase in attention on issues that affected girls, they still faced challenges such as physical and mental abuse, teenage pregnancy, lack of educational opportunities and violence.

"Girls with disabilities also faced additional challenges which we must all work hard to address," she said.

Background

The International Day of the Girl Child is commemorated on October 11, every year in recognition of girls’ rights and the unique challenges they face around the world.

The day was first observed in 2012.