Akyem Oda, Oct 7, GNA - Dr Kwasi Akyem Apea-Kubi, the Eastern Regional Minister, has appealed to female teachers to serve as mentors and role models to encourage female students to aim high on the education ladder. Dr Apea-Kubi was speaking at the Eastern Regional 93World Teachers Day" celebration at Akyem Oda in the Birim Central Municipality.

The celebration was under the Theme 93Teachers for gender equality= ". Dr Apea-Kubi said teachers had a key advocacy role to play to educate pupils and students under their tutelage on the importance of gender equality. He said the importance of gender equality was underscored by its inclusion in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which called for the empowerment of women because they are indispensable in advancing development and reducing poverty. Dr Apea-Kubi said the government had put in place measures to empower women socially, economically and political. "The government has mapped out policies and programmes that are gender sensitive and which take into account the differing gender roles and gender needs of both men and women in the larger society", he said.

Nana Addo Gyau Akabisa II, the Eastern Regional Chairman of the Ghana National Association Teachers (GNAT), said teachers by the nature of their training and professional competences could form a solid base on which to unlock the forces of discrimination against gender equality and remove negative cultures that make it impossible for gender equality to succeed. Ms Ophelia Koomson, Birim Central Municipal Chief Executive, appealed to teachers to exercise restraint with the government over their challenges since measures were being put in place to tackle those challenges.