Some small scale miners at Bonsa, a farming community in the Tarkwa –Nsuaem Municipality of the Western Region , are using their largesse to woo innocent primary schoolgirls into sexual relationships.

The phenomenon has resulted in high teenage pregnancy in the area; something that has also given rise to school dropout among the schoolgirls.

Authorities at the Bonsa No 2 MA Primary say about three girls of the school are impregnated every academic year, causing them to drop out. Chairman of the school’s Parent and Teachers Association, Steven Anderson, told Takoradi-based Connect FM that the situation has been of a serious concern to both authorities of the school and the community, saying “it’s not the best we are trying to help”.

According to him, the acts by these young small scale miners are adversely affecting education in the area. Mr Anderson said some parents are unable to take care of their responsibilities towards their children, which causes the male pupils especially, to sneak out of their classrooms to engage in galamsey to earn some income to support themselves.

The head teacher of Bonsa No 2 MA Primary, Mrs Theresa Nketsia Otoo was not happy about the level of teenage pregnancy in the area, which she has become a “galamsey prone area”.

Meanwhile, the school is appealing for government and stakeholder support to construct a new school building, a well-resourced computer laboratory and libraries to help in the education of the pupils.