We are not spoilt girls: Dressmakers and hairdressers perception on sexual and reproductive health education.

The 1994 ICPD recommended that comprehensive reproductive health information is made accessible, affordable and acceptable to all users. In response, various educational programmes are being implemented in Ghana to encourage people adopt healthy reproductive lifestyles and attitudes. Currently, sexual and reproductive health education issues form an integral part of the curriculum in all levels of education in Ghana however; a sizeable proportion of the population are currently out-of-school. This study explored how information on sexual and reproductive health is delivered and discussed at dressmaking shops and hairdressing salons. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 119 and 34 respondents respectively. Economic factors were identified as a major contributor regarding respondent’s access to and utlisation of sexual and reproductive health information. The study also revealed that some shops and salons did not have access to mass media although the respondents spend most of their time at these places. It was identified that some respondents paid little or no attention to reproductive health issues nor do they make deliberate effort to listen or view such programmes to avoid being tagged as spoilt girls. It was recommended that sex education programmes should be specifically designed for informal sector.