Activism to mark International Women’s Day begins
Activism to mark the United Nations International Women’s Day begins in Ghana today with the maiden “Ghana Women’s Summit”, to acknowledge the efforts of gender pacesetters in Ghana, Africa and on the international scene.
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The Ghana Women’s Summit will provide a platform to recognise women’s contribution, celebrate the country’s progress and to once again call for the advancement of women and the promotion of gender equality.
It will bring together former first ladies, female parliamentarians, lady ambassadors, female ministers of state, ladies of the cergy, chiefs and queenmothers, women in academia, women in the corporate and business fields, market women, students, politicians, public servants and civil society groups. The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) is organising the women’s summit in Accra today (Monday) to celebrate the achievements of women across the country.
Review of strategies
“It is also an occasion to appraise our successes and failures in order to review our strategies at ensuring the advancement of women, with respect to the economy, business, science, technology, sports and arts, as well as social cohesion,” it added.
A statement signed by the Communications Advisor to the ministry, Mrs Mercy Adjabeng, saluted Ghanaian women and celebrated their achievements, while it also congratulated organisations that had the interest of women at heart for their relentless, collective efforts in the struggle to ensure gender equality, and as well end violence against women and girls.
The statement said, admittedly, there had been some positive developments by all significant stakeholders, with respect to policy, legal innovations and some attitudinal shift in society’s perception on gender equality and women’s empowerment but said “the efforts are, however, not commensurate with the results”.
“There are still issues concerning male dominance and women’s participation and representation in decision making. This is reflected in the continuous existence of gender inequalities in the educational, health, political and public decision-making sectors,” it said.
Affirmative Action Law
It added that that was why the ministry “is committed to ensuring the passage of the Affirmative Action Law to promote equal representation of women and men in decision making for holistic development,” saying, “in fact, that is Ghana’s only way of attaining gender equality with respect to women’s empowerment, autonomy, social, economic and political advancement for sustainable national development”.
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“As we mark this day, we call on women rights advocates, policy makers, traditional, religious and civil society organisations and corporate institutions for a deepened collaboration to ensure that women contribute to national development in dignity and freedom,” it added.
It said that would promote more women’s participation in decision-making structures, greater equality in legislative rights and an increased critical mass of women’s visibility, thereby providing impressive role models in every aspect of life.
The Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at the weekend, called for a concerted effort from all concerned bodies to fight and protect women’s right of participation and representation in decision making.
She said even though much progress had been made to protect and promote women’s rights in recent times, nowhere in the world could women claim to have the same rights and opportunities as men.