Elmina (C/R), July 02, GNA - A Municipal Public Health Nurse at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Madam Henrietta Ghansah, on Tuesday urged parents to take keen interest in monitoring the various growth stages of their children.

Madam Ghansah who addressed this year's African Union (AU) Day of the African Child in Cape Coast, said it was important for mothers to ensure that their babies had quality healthcare right from birth to make them physically fit and immune to diseases, stressing that close monitoring of babies at birth helped in the early detection and management of childhood diseases.

The theme for this year's celebration was "Africa fit for children: Call for accelerated action towards Child Survival". She advised the participants to keep their surroundings clean, maintain good personal hygiene, and undertake regular physical exercises to make them fit and active at all times, saying that healthy practices could help prolong one's life span.

Mrs. Regina Ofori Apea, Regional Girl Child Coordinator at the Ghana Education Service (GES), asked parents to make immense investment in the education of their children and stop spending unnecessarily on material things, while adding moral training for them to be responsible, disciplined and fit into society properly.

Mrs Apea cautioned female students to desist from immoral behaviour and rather concentrate on their academic work, adding that teenage pregnancy could be an impediment to realizing their dreams. Mr David Ehuron Amoah, Acting Regional Director of the Department of Children, said the AU Day of the African Child was celebrated on June 16 every year, to commemorate the gruesome murder of school children in Soweto, South Africa under the erstwhile apartheid regime. He said that this year's celebration was meant to bring to the fore the problems African children face, to afford governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) the opportunity to focus on those problems and take the necessary steps to find lasting solutions to them. He urged all in society to ensure that the rights of children were not abused but protected to promote their full development for the benefit of society. Madam Paulina Abaayage, Regional Director of the Department of Women, who presided advised children to respect their parents and to assist them with household chores. She also encouraged them to set greater goals in life and be determined to achieve them. The programme was attended by queen mothers, parents and students within the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abrem (KEEA) District.