The Ghana Education Service (GES) has expressed worries about the increasing prevalence of tattooing, multiple piercings, and skin bleaching among students, labeling it as “a troubling phenomenon.”
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Furthermore, the GES has voiced profound concern regarding the challenges of teenage pregnancies and cohabitation, emphasizing their negative effects on students’ educational endeavors, particularly among girls.
Priscilla Christabel Eshun, the Central Regional Girls Education Officer of the GES, expressed astonishment at the discovery that some young students sported noticeable tattoos bearing unusual names and meanings.
The GES discovered these observations during its visits to particular districts in the Central Region as part of its ‘Life Skills Programme,’ crafted to enhance students’ capabilities and confidence.
The districts explored include Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, Assin South, Ekumfi, Upper Denkyira West, Twifo-Hemang-Lower-Denkyira West, and the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem Municipality.
Eshun shared these discoveries during the Second Quarter Sub-Implementing Partners (IPs) Review Meeting on sexual and gender-based violence. The session was organized by the Regional Coordinating Council and supported by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
“In one of the schools we visited, a young girl had bleached her skin to the point where it was peeling off and emitting an unpleasant smell. We also observed students with multiple piercings in their ears.
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“This has become a fashion trend, and many girls are engaging in it without considering the potential health, employment, and other socio-economic consequences,” Eshun stated.
She also revealed that numerous boys had dropped out of school for various reasons and were now operating tricycles (known as Aboboyaa or Pragyia). Further investigations suggested that many young girls were forming associations with these boys in search of financial assistance.
“Regrettably, many girls are enticed into such relationships for financial gain, using the money to purchase sanitary pads and other personal items,” she added.
She emphasized that the GES prohibits tattooing, multiple piercing, and skin bleaching, as outlined in its unified Code of Conduct for students in pre-tertiary schools.
Eshun further explained that the GES Code of Conduct emphasizes the necessity for students to maintain neat attire, consistently adhere to the prescribed dress code and footwear, and refrain from wearing accessories such as chains, bangles, caps, and bracelets.
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