The Coordinator of Zongo and Inner-Cities Development Secretariat (ZICDS) under the Office of the President, Mr Ben Abdallah Banda has stated that education is a necessity for the girl child to enable her to make a meaningful contribution to national development.
According to him, educating the girl child and protecting the girl-child deliberately create opportunities for them towards national development.
Mr Banda made this statement when he spoke as the Special Guest of Honour at the 25th Annual Quranic Celebration organized by Sheikh Luqman Bamba, the Director of Bambawiyya Islamic Institute in Tamale, the Northern Regional capital on the theme; “Role of Women in Nation Building.”
Sheikh Luqman Bamba is a distinguished Scholar in Islamic Jurisprudence who has over the past 25 years organized this annual programme to celebrate the importance of the Holy Quran.
The programme over the past few years has promoted peaceful coexistence, community development, women empowerment, and support for the less- privileged among others across the country.
Addressing the gathering on the theme, the Zongo and Inner Cities Coordinator, Mr Banda emphasised on the role women played in the stability, spread, and progress of Islam during the time of Prophet Mohammed.
‘’The contribution of women such as Khadijat bint Khuwailid, A’ishat bint Abubakar, Ummu Sulaymi, Sumayya, and many others towards the development of Islam is something that cannot be overemphasized.
He told the gathering about the important role women are playing in the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia.
“The appointment of the first female Chief of Staff, Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare for two consecutive terms is something that had never happened in the history of Ghana”, he stressed.
He noted that currently, about 36 percent of Deputy Ministers in the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration are women, which had also not happened before.
The coordinator who was a former Member of Parliament for Offinso South Constituency in the Ashanti Region had the privilege of launching a book on “Fiqh” (Islamic Jurisprudence) authored by Sheikh Luqman Bamba.
He recommended the book to all Muslim and even non-Muslims who seek to understand the concept of Islamic Jurisprudence.
Mr Banda charged the gathering to take advantage of the various government programmes such as the Free SHS, National Entrepreneurship and Innovative Programme (NEIP), Planting for Food and Jobs, Youth in Agriculture, and many others that are being rolled out.
He was later awarded a Citation of Honour by the Bambawiyya Islamic Institute led by Sheikh Luqman Bamba for his contribution towards the development of the country and the Muslim community.
