International Needs Ghana (INGH), an NGO focused on transforming lives and communities, has called for swift legislative actions to make the age of consent to sex consistent with the legal age of marriage.
Mr Isaac Arthur, the Head of Programmes for INGH, insisted that both the ages of sexual consent and marriage must be pegged at 18 years to mitigate the incidence of child marriage fuelled by the current discrepancy.
“Because a lot of people are confused about what happens in-between the ages 16 and 18, they are taking advantage of that gap to promote gender and sexual based violence,” he stated.
“So, if we have consistency working with a specific age, which is 18 years, we standardise the issue and take away every confusion, so we can protect more of our children,” he said.
Mr Arthur made the call at the inception meeting on the Promoting Adolescent Safe Spaces (PASS) project for 2025, an intervention which primarily seeks to end child marriage and protect children from other social vices.
Funded under the UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to End Child Marriage, PASS combines education, fun, and skills development to holistically empower girls and boys to secure a better future.
Under the project, INGH works with the Ghana Education Service, Ghana Health Service and Ghana Police Service to address issues on child marriage at the district level.

Health workers, teachers, and community members volunteer to re-orient and sensitise the children on adolescent pregnancy, child marriage, substance abuse, reproductive health, positive masculinity, among other crucial subjects necessary to protect their rights.
The year-long project will take place in 15 communities in the Awutu- Senya District, Awutu-Senya-East Municipality and Gomoa-East District of the Central Region.
The meeting brought together various stakeholders to deliberate on the objectives of the project, seek their support and discuss strategies to address the issue of child marriage.
Mr Arthur noted that most adolescents were not aware of the ages of sexual consent and marriage and, therefore, fell victim to defilement and child marriage which violated their rights.
“The law is the most important thing that will promote the best interest of every child, and the best interest of every child is that we allow them to have their freedom, enjoy their rights, and secure their future,” he stressed.
Touting some achievements of the project, Mr Arthur said it had contributed significantly to the reduction of child marriage in the Central Region.
“We have a lot of girls who are now assertive and can say no to any form of child marriage.
“We also have a number of girls who were out of school and have now returned to school, while others have been placed in apprenticeship and vocational programmes,” he noted.
To sustain the programme, he said they were working with stakeholders at the district and community levels to sustain it.
He appealed to the media to intensify the campaign against child marriage, describing the media as a crucial ally.
Mr Isaac Effah Ofori, the Programme Assistant, indicated that the PASS project had already benefited 87 communities and more than 10,000 people in Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem, Cape Coast, Mfantseman, Agona West, and Assin Fosu.
He entreated the stakeholders for the three new districts to assist the NGO monitor and run the Safe Spaces in their respective communities when INGH was not present.
INGH seeks to transform lives and change communities through an integrated thematic approach in promoting community development with focus on child rights, education, health, and gender empowerment.