Nana Oye Lithur, Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, would lead a 40-member delegation to participate in the 57th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the United Nations headquarters in New York, USA.
The delegation is made up of Members of Parliament, representatives from the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and the media.
Briefing the press in Accra, Mrs Adiza Ofori-Adu, Public Relations Officer of the Ministry, said the Minister would make a statement on efforts and interventions being made by Ghana to address violence against women.
She said the statement would highlights efforts made by Ghana to overcome constraints in the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act (732), 2007 and other legislations and programmes implemented by government, CSOs and NGOs in the prevention and elimination of gender-based violence.
The priority theme for this year's Session scheduled to take place from March 4 to March 15, 2013 is "Elimination and prevention of all forms of Violence against Women and Girls".
Mrs Ofori-Adu said prior to the CSW meeting, the Minister would participate in the consultation of Commonwealth National Women's Machineries.
She said the consultation, which is held annually on the sidelines of Sessions of the CSW by the Commonwealth Secretariat, provides opportunities for the secretariat to brief National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) and partners on achievements and challenges towards implementing the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality, 2005-2015.
Ghana's delegation and civil society groups attending the Session would also be represented on various panels to discuss the priority theme, and share best practices in Ghana on Gender-based violence.
In addition to the priority theme, the Session would also review progress made on “The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including care-giving in the context of HIV/AIDS.
The CSW is a functional Commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women.
It was established in June 1946 as a mechanism to promote, report on and monitor issues relating to the political, economic, civil, social and educational rights of women.
It holds annual sessions in March to evaluate progress made in protecting and enforcing the rights of women globally.