The Most Rev. John Alphonse Asiedu, SVD, Bishop of the Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate in the Kwahu Afram Plains North District, Eastern Region of Ghana, has urged teenage mothers in the Vicariate to fully utilize the skills they had recently gained as the only way to appreciate the God-given opportunity.
He said, “I believe the only way you can show true appreciation for what we have offered you is to be able to use the skills you have acquired and the little contribution we have made to help you start your businesses.”
“Do not disappoint the Vicariate, do not disappoint yourselves, and do not even disappoint God who has offered you this opportunity,” he added.
He said these in an advice to the newly trained teenage mothers at their March 19, 2025 skills training graduation ceremony at the Alfons Merten’s Centre, Donkorkrom.
The two-week training was organised by the Apostolic Vicariate of Donkorkrom and the Projects and Development Office (PDO) of the Society of Divine Word (SVD) Ghana Province, at the Alfons Merten’s Centre in Donkorkrom from February 10 to 22, 2025.
It benefitted 32 teen/young mothers from Donkorkrom, Adeemra, Amankwakrom, Amankwa Tornu and Ntonaboma, who were trained in Catering (Bread, pastries, and local drinks), Fashion (Millinery and Accessories), Detergents Production and Basic Hair and Beauty Therapy.
The training was facilitated by Madam Grace Asante, for Catering, Mrs. Atikpli Patience, for Fashion, Madam Lily Tetteh for Detergents, all teachers at St. Mary’s Vocational Senior High School, Adeemra, and Madam Shelter Asabea Kumi, a beautician working in Donkorkrom.
According to Bishop Asiedu, the Skills Training exercise was “the beginning of our dream of helping our teenage mothers within the catchment area of the Vicariate to be self-reliant”.
Using the first group of beneficiaries as a case study, he was hopeful that their experience would be a success story that would open doors to more opportunities for them, and for many others who may be in similar need.
For this dream to be fully realised, the Bishop advised the young mothers to suspend all the enjoyment, fashion, and other things that could destruct and derail them, and rather focus on the work they were about to begin, and take it very seriously.
“You should be able to give testimonies to the fact that the venture of training you have acquired was worthwhile,” the Bishop noted.
Bishop Asiedu extended profound gratitude to KINDERMISSIONSWERK and Hand-in-Hand Friends for Ghana, Germany, who provided the funds for the project. He was equally indebted to the SVD Ghana Province Projects and Development Office (PDO), for taking the initiative to contact him and also for writing the project proposal.
He also thanked Rev. Fr. Vincent Amuzu Asafo, SVD, in charge of the Projects and Development Office of the Vicariate, who was instrumental in identifying the contact persons in their communities, and the contact persons who in turn helped in identifying the teenage/young mothers.
He didn’t leave out the teachers who had volunteered to come and take the young mothers through the whole Skills Training exercise. “We are very grateful. Without you, we couldn’t have done what we have done for these young ladies,” he appreciated.
According to Rev. Fr. Phanuel Myers Agudu, Director of Projects and Development Office of the Divine Word Missionaries (SVD) Ghana Province, the purpose of the training was to empower the young mothers to be able to take care of themselves economically, as well as their children.
This, he said, would go a long way to help the young women address challenges that may come their way, hence reducing their chances of running into the arms of men for help, most of whom end up taking advantage of them.
He, therefore, encouraged them to make good use of all they had learnt, and use the skills to expand their own businesses.
Madam Rose Anarfiwaah Oppong, Project Officer, SVD Ghana PDO, who had been with the teenage mothers all through their period of training challenged them not to allow their 2-week efforts to come to waste, but to put into use all they have learnt.
She expressed the hope that as the trainees get to expand their businesses, they would be able to employ one or two other teen/young mothers in their communities and support them, hence reducing the financial struggles in our community.
The Project Officer further encouraged the teenage mothers to use the opportunity of having been empowered to stop depending on men, and practice abstinence. “Close up and focus more on your newly acquired skills,” she cautioned.
“Let that be your main preoccupation, and don’t go around sleeping with men for money again, else you will keep having more children, and that poverty cycle we want to break will continue,” she added.
Activities featured during the Skills Training Closing Ceremony included the blessing of the Start-off packages for the Trainees by His Lordship, the Most Rev. John Alphonse Asiedu, SVD, the award of Certificates, and words of advice and encouragement by the Bishop, Trainers, Parents of the Trainees and other Stakeholders to the trainees.
Also, class representatives of each of the departments were symbolically handed their share of the package, and the rest of the trainees received theirs at the end of the closing ceremony.
Present at the ceremony were Rev. Fr. Vincent Amuzu Asafo, Rev. Fr. Matthew Akakpo, an Assisting Priest at the St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, Donkorkrom, Sr. Mary Stella Darkoah Yeboah, HDR, working at the Alfons Merten’s Centre, parents and guardians of the trainees. Also present were the Lumen Christi TV and Newswatch Ghana Media houses from Accra.
By Sr. Sylvie Lum Cho, MSHR (DEPSOCOM, Donkorkrom Apostolic Vicariate)//Newswatchgh.com
