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Mrs Shirley Asiedu-Addo, the Executive Director of Female Journalists for Women and Rural Development in Africa (FJWoRDA), has called on young girls to consider abstinence as the first option in their sexual choices.

She said abstinence should not be seen as an outmoded sexual option because it was the safest way to avoid sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancies.

Mrs Asiedu-Addo was speaking to adolescents at a seminar organized by FJWoRDA in Cape Coast to educate them on transitioning into responsible womanhood.

It was on the theme: “Stay Chaste, Say No to Teen Sex to End Teen Pregnancies,” and brought together some selected adolescent girls from Ntsin and Anaafo, both suburbs of Cape Coast.

FJWoRDA aims at promoting effective initiatives to seek the well-being of women and girls in all aspects of their lives including sexual health, education, and career choices to help eradicate poverty among women.

Its objective is to empower people, especially women and girls, to encourage them to aspire to greater heights to help better the lives and those of their families and communities.

Mrs Asiedu-Addo urged the girls to live decent lives without shame and avoid risky sexual behaviours that could lead them into contracting sexually transmitted infections.

The dangers of living reckless sexual lifestyles could be devastating to their health, ambitions and goals and urged them to be chaste and stick to their goals to achieve their future aspirations.

Mrs Asiedu-Addo urged young girls to be assertive and expose unscrupulous males who would want to sexually abuse them.

She advised the girls to be politely firm in rejecting harassment and advances from men and boys without feeling guilty and never be afraid to report any man or person who attempts to sexually harass them.

She cautioned men who violate and defile young girls to put an end to the practice as the law would deal with them when caught.

On career choices, Mrs Asiedu-Addo urged girls to be bold to venture into male-dominated career fields and aspire to greater heights once they had the interest.