NGO demands justice for nine-year old defilement victim at Jema
The MIHOSO Foundation, a human rights and health centered Non-Governmental Organisation has condemned the alleged defilement of a nine-year-old girl at Jema in the Kintampo South District of the Bono East Region.
Mr Thomas Benarkuu, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Foundation that works to end Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) called on the police to facilitate the prosecution of the suspect to serve the victim and her family the required justice.
The Police have granted a 23-year-old unemployed GH¢100,000 police enquiry bail and a surety for allegedly defiling the minor at Jema, the District capital.
According to Inspector David Akologo, the police investigator at the Criminal Investigations Department at the Jema Police Station, the incident happened November 4, 2025 and told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that police had prepared and were yet to forward the docket to the Attorney General for advice.
Commenting on the crime, Mr Benarkuu told the GNA in an interview at Jema that defilement remained a worst form of human rights violation inimical to the growth and development of girls, saying prosecuting the suspect would serve as deterrent to like-minded others.
He expressed worry that despite intensified advocacy efforts, cases of SGBV remained common in some deprived communities, and expressed concern about weak law enforcement which ought to be strengthened to help bring the situation under control.
Mr Benarkuu said that: “In fact Ghana faces numerous forms of SGBV, disproportionately affecting women and children”, saying a recent report by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) showed that 78.1 percent of women suffered from GBV as compared to 28.2 percent of men.
He said most SGBV cases in the country were manifested in denial of basic needs, physical assault, rape and defilement, restricted movement, and sexual harassment.
The Demographic and Health Survey Report (DHS Report 2022) found that 33 percent of women in Ghana aged between 15 and 49 years have experienced physical violence since the age of 15 years, he stated.
More so, 61 percent of women who had ever had a husband or intimate partner reported experiencing at least one specific type of controlling behaviour from their current or most recent partner.
Additionally, 36 percent of these women reported experiencing emotional, physical, or sexual violence from their current or most recent partner, with 28 percent experiencing such violence in the past year.
Mr Benarkuu added that: “Prevalent forms of SGBV reported at various support centres include physical assault and abuse, domestic violence, sexual abuse, economic abuse, psychological abuse, school-based violence, and harmful practices such as child marriages and female genital mutilation (FGM)”.
He said Ghana Health Service report in 2020 revealed that 34.5 percent of women in the Bono East experienced physical or sexual violence while the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the region recorded 317 SGBV cases in 2020, with 75 percent being domestic violence.
Mr Benarkuu said socioeconomic factors like poverty, unemployment and underemployment, financial dependency, unequal power structures, traditions and cultural beliefs, patriarchy, limited educational opportunities were identified as driving forces of SGBV.
He explained that it was against this background that the Foundation had sought funding from the GIZ executing a project in the Bono East and Ahafo Regions to help tackle the SGBV in the regions.
Titled: “Rise Up: Uniting communities to prevent SGBV against women and girls in Bono East and Ahafo regions”, the project seeks to focus on promoting and protecting the rights of women and adolescent girls on SGBV through a multi-stakeholder partnership in advancing gender equality in the Bono East and Ahafo regions of Ghana.
This project will be implemented in three districts of Kintampo South and Techiman North Districts of the Bono East and Tano North Municipality of the Ahafo Regions.
It sought to increase awareness and knowledge: Educate communities, especially in rural areas, about the causes and consequences of SGBV, promoting a culture of respect and zero tolerance for violence against women and girls.
Mr Benarkuu added that the project implementation would enhance access to support services, such as counseling, healthcare, and legal aid, for survivors of SGBV, ensuring they receive the help they need to recover and seek justice.
It further advocates effective enforcement of laws and policies on SGBV like the Domestic Violence Act, and holds duty-bearers accountable for addressing SGBV, ensuring perpetrators face justice.
Mr Benarkuu said the project targeted to reach out to beneficiaries of women and girls as well as men and boys between aged 15 to 49 years, traditional and community elders, local healthcare providers, state institutions including DOVVSU, Legal Aid Commission, and police.
Others include the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice, (CHRAJ), Department of Social Welfare and Community Development, Ghana Health Service, Ghana Education Service and the National Commission of Civic Education (NCCE) as well as social workers and community volunteers.
Source: GNA