Premarital Sex among JHS Students in Ashanti Region of Ghana: Some Lessons for Christian Advocacy

Kenneth OppongORCID iD, Kwabena Opuni-FrimpongORCID iD, Collins Boafo and Bright Antwi

Issue: Vol.8 No.7 August 2022 Issue  Article 1 pp.177-190
DOI : https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.2022871  |   Published online 4th August 2022.
© 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Youth engagement in premarital sexual practice is reported to be increasing globally. This is not different in Ghana. In Ghana, the Ashanti Region is reported to have the highest rate of teenage pregnancy. This presupposes the prevalence of premarital sexual practice among the youth in the region. The study sought to assess the prevalence of premarital sexual practices among Junior High students in the Ashanti Region of Ghana and the factors accounting for that in order to suggest some lessons for Christian advocacy. The study used the Trede Adventist Junior High School as a case study. The descriptive-analytical method was used to discuss the data collected. The study uncovered that premarital sexual practice is prevalent among students of the Trede Adventist JHS. Peer pressure, poverty, poor parenting, dating, sexual urge, covetousness, media, lack of sex education and drug abuse were mentioned as the influencing factors. The study observed that there is a need for Christian advocacy in arresting this premarital sex menace, and this could be done through the provision of sex education and counselling services, education and awareness creation, job creation and provision of scholarships. This study provides insight into the construction of public theology for youth on similar issues.

Keywords: Ghana, Premarital sex, influencing Factors, Youth, Christian Advocacy

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Kenneth Oppong is an Ordained Pastor of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Ghana, and currently serves as Part-time Lecturer for Valley View University, Kumasi Campus. He holds a Master of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies from Adventist University of Africa, Kenya. Currently, he is an MPhil student at the Department of Religious Studies at KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. His research interest covers Church History, Systematic Theology, Biblical Studies and Public Theology.

Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong (PhD), is a Ghanaian scholar and Presbyterian Minister who served as the General Secretary of the Christian Council of Ghana. Currently, he is a Lecturer at the Department of Religious Studies at KNUST, Ghana.

Collins Boafo is a teacher at Abuakwa State College at Kyebi in the Eastern Region. Currently, he is an MPhil Student at the Department of Religious Studies, KNUST, Ghana. His research interest is in Religion and Society, Religion and Media.

Bright Antwi is an Ordained Pastor of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Ghana. He holds MPhil in Religious Studies from KNUST, Ghana. Currently, he is a Ph.D. Student at the Department of Religious Studies, KNUST, Ghana.

Oppong K.,Opuni-Frimpong K., Boafo C. & Antwi B., “Premarital Sex among JHS Students in Ashanti Region of Ghana: Some Lessons for Christian Advocacy,” E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies, 8 no.7 (2022): 177-190.  https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.2022871

© 2022 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Publishers. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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