Matse (Volta Region) Mrs Hilary Gbedemah, a Ho based legal practitioner, has condemned the habit among some men to demand sex before offering employment to women.

She said such demands are not only immoral but also constitute sexual harassment at workplaces.

Mrs Gbedemah, who is also a Senior Legal Officer of Women in Law and Development in Africa, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) was answering a question at the second annual girls education week durbar of the Ho district, held at Matse on Tuesday.

She said women in such situations should not only resist but also remind the men of the impropriety of their demand and seek legal advice.

Captain George Nfojoh (rtd), Ho District Chief Executive, Togbe Osei Tutu VI, Paramount Chief of Matse Traditional Area and officials of the Ghana Education Service attended the durbar, which was preceded by a route march by pupils in first cycle schools bearing placards extolling girls' education.

Mama Agblatsu III, Ho District Director of Education, said some socio-cultural practices frustrate and serve as a great disincentive to girls' education in Ghana.

She said "for instance the girl-child is saddled at home with house chores that begin early in the morning so that by the time she reaches school she is already tired".

Mama Agblatsu listed other factors that negatively affect girls education as "poverty, parental and community attitudes due to gender stereo-typing, the opportunity costs of sending daughters to school, lack of friendly school structures, early marriage and gender insensitive curriculum".

She said these factors seem to perpetuate and even widen further the gender gap, whereby the number of girls, as compared to that of boys continue to reduce at all levels of education in the country.

Statistics made available to the Ghana News Agency by the Ho District Directorate of Education indicate that there has been a marginal drop in the enrolment of girls in schools in the district this year.

For example at the junior secondary school (JSS) level, 6,751 are on roll this academic year, compared to 6,841 in the 1998/99 academic year.

According to the data, in the primary section, 17,879 females were on roll in the 1998/99 academic year but it dropped to 17,319 in the 1999/2000 academic year.

Mama Agblatsu said the trend could be due to early pregnancy and migration.

Captain Nfodjo urged the chiefs and people of Matse to institute a fund to help the brilliant but financially distressed pupils to continue school.

He said moneys, instead of drinks fines should be imposed on culprits from cases settled at the chief's court and such monies used for the fund.

Mrs Alice Stella Ayebi of the EP Church, Ghana, Headquarters, who chaired the function, asked both parents to co-operate in the education of their children.

There was a sketch by the Matse 31 December Women's movement depicting the result of irresponsible parenthood.