Mba, C.J.Kwankye, S.O.2019-05-142019-05-142007chapter 9, pp. 183-188http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh/handle/123456789/299759 Chapter Conclusion Stephen O. Kwankye and Chuks J. Mba The papers that were presented at the Seminar raised a number of relevant developmental issues and generated a wide range of discussions. A number of recommendations and conclusions were also made. The salient features of these discussions and concomitant recommendations are presented in this chapter. First, it is important to undertake more qualitative studies to investigate the factors that are responsible for the fertility transition in Ghana, considering that the socio-cultural environment plays critical roles in shaping fertility behaviour, choices and decisions not only in Ghana but throughout sub-Saharan Africa. For now however, efforts should be made to develop the large army of youthful population into a useful human resource for nation building. In all the presentations, education has been highlighted as a key factor towards the achievement of almost all the MDGs. In response to this recognition therefore, while ensuring that all children of school going age go to school, equally adequate attention should be paid to adult literacy. This is important considering the high rate of early school drop out especially among females in the rural areas. Formal education alone may not provide us with the full antidote. The analysis of HIV prevalence across sub-Saharan Africa suggests quite plausibly that poor countries are not necessarily those with the highest rates of HIV infection. It is therefore not quite clear the extent to which poverty stands to blame as a major cause of HIV. While this may appear to be a valid argument at the country by country comparison, within each country, the situation may be to the contrary and poverty may be a very important factor or condition in understanding HIV infection and spread although the role of other conditions and factors like education cannot be discounted. The need for more research in this area cannot also be underestimated. There appears to be a conflict between the policy environment and the legal framework regarding sexuality and contraception. While the policy makes it clear that all sexually active adolescents (i.e., 10-19-year-olds) should have access to contraception, the law on defilement rules out sexual consent by persons less than 16 years. By implication, persons less than 16 years cannot and should not be sexually active and are therefore not eligible to have access to, or use any form of contraception in Ghana. This is a clear conflict, which requires resolution to guide institutions and organisations like the Ghana Social Marketing Foundation (GSMF), which are into contraceptive advocacy, provision and sensitisation programmes. Again, there are still concerns about condom educational campaigns as a way of counteracting the upsurge of HIV/AIDS in Ghana and elsewhere in Africa. With reference to young persons however, this practice is clearly in conflict with Ghana’s law on defilement. Consequently, there should be audience segmentation, which should seek to place emphasis on abstinence for young persons to keep them away from early sex and condoms for persons who are sexually active beyond the age at which one could have consent for sex as is enshrined in the laws of the state. From the papers and discussions at the Seminar, one issue on which consensus was again reached is preventive as opposed to curative health. While efforts at encouraging the population to adopt the use of insecticide treated bed nets are ongoing and ought to be intensified , we need to equally intensify public education and attitudinal change regarding environmental sanitation and the sustainability of the eco-system as a critical 184 POPULATION, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT component of sustainable development. Garbage collection in our cities and towns should be regular while choked drains ought to be de-silted frequently. As a permanent solution, newly constructed drains should be covered and persons who indiscriminately litter the environment should be prosecuted and heavy fines imposed without delay to serve as deterrent to others. All indicators of the health status of the population appear to be poor in the three northern regions in Ghana, i.e., Northern, Upper East and Upper West. Yet, there are several interventions that are ongoing in these regions by government and several non-governmental organisations (NGOs). In these regions, we have high fertility because among other things, infant mortality is high. The situation in these regions should however, not be misconstrued to indicate a failure of the interventions . This is because demographic phenomena often require long periods of time to register tangible changes.enBook chapter