150 girls retrieved from marriages in Gwembe

More than 150 girls who were married off at a tender age in Gwembe district, Southern Province have been retrieved from their marriages under the Keeping Girls in School (KGS) initiative. And the Ministry of General Education says the girls will retain to  school when schools open on January 18th, this year. Gwembe District Education Board Secretary, (DEBS) Benson Zemba said the girls were identified in Chipepo and Munyumbwe chiefdoms. Speaking in an interview with ZANIS in Gwembe, Mr. Zemba said the government is determined to empower vulnerable girls in the country through the Keeping Girls in School project. “Through this scheme, the government will economically and support the girls who find themselves in undesirable marriages,” Mr. Zemba said. Mr Zemba commended Chief Chipepo and Munyumbwe who have been supporting the (KGS) programme in their Chiefdoms. The KGS is a World Bank funded project aimed at empowering women and keeping girls in school. Meanwhile, the DEBS has disclosed that Gwembe has received 4,210 face masks, 330 hand washing soap, 66 buckets, 33 thermometers and an assortment of hand sanitizers that will evenly be distributed in all schools in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr. Zemba warned the school authorities against abusing the facilities as doing so is frustrating government efforts to win the fight on coronavirus. He advised the beneficiaries to adhere to public health Act guidelines on the dangers of this infectious disease by sanitizing, masking up always and maintaining social distance to avoid it from spreading further. Gwembe has so far recorded over 10 positive cases of Covid-19 while measures are being heightened by the ministry of health.