Accra, April 21, GNA - Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED) and The MasterCard Foundation, on Thursday launched a nation-wide programme to provide secondary education, financial literacy and entrepreneurship opportunities to 200,000 youth from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The 10-million-dollar partnership programme is expected to benefit over one million people from rural communities. CAMFED has started working in the Northern Region but the partnership would allow the organisation to extend its services to brilliant and needy girls in the Central and Northern Regions. Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, Minister of Education launching the programme in Accra said government had placed high priority on the development of women and making steady progress towards promoting gender equality and empowering women as part of its drive to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

"The expansion of CAMFED's innovative programme in the country will empower thousands of girls and young women from deprived rural communities in Ghana, by providing them with the necessary access to education and financial literacy," she said.

Mrs Mould-Iddrisu lauded the programme for creating opportunities for women to take control of their future and live quality lives, adding that 93When women take centre stage in our politics, our business environment, and decision-making in our communities, we will witness unprecedented accelerated development in the country." Executive Director of CAMFED, Mrs Delores Dickson noted that the programme was aimed at providing young girls the needed educational support, skills and knowledge to break the cycle of poverty in their communities.

According to her, early drop-out from school, poor employment opportunities and social marginalisation in decision making process reflected their low social status and lack of empowerment. Ms Reeta Roy, President and CEO of MasterCard Foundation, said CAMFED's holistic approach enabled young women to become leaders of change and role models who re-invest back into their communities and noted, 93The MasterCard Foundation's partnership with CAMFED will enable young women in Ghana to build their own pathways out of poverty".

She said one of the key objectives of the Foundation was to increase micro finance.

CAMFED has since 1998 provided 46,177 children with financial support to attend school, 12,377 girls with scholarships to pursue Senior High School education and more than 100,000 rural children have also benefited from CAMFED's educational programmes in 14 rural districts.