The Centre for Rural Women Empowerment and Development (CERWED), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), in collaboration with ABANTU for Development, also an NGO, with support from the European Union, organised a day’s affirmative action forum in Wa in the Upper West Region.
Participants included newly elected women assembly members, traditional rulers, decentralised departmental heads, journalists and
members of the Savannah Women Empowerment Group, an NGO.
The forum discussed challenges that perpetuated gender inequalities and disparities, which resulted in the exclusion of women in the decision-making process in Ghana.
Participants solicited views for a proposed affirmative action policy being developed for Ghana.
Mrs. Helen Koranteng, Executive Director of CERWED, said barriers to women’s political participation in Ghana just as other parts of the
World existed due to social and cultural discrimination.
She said there was the need for affirmative action for women due to the slow rate of their representation in governance in Ghana and in
the Upper West Region in particular.
Mrs. Koranteng said through affirmative action, some African countries such as Rwanda, South Africa, Angola and Mozambique had attained 30 per cent quota system for women in the decision-making process.
She asked the participants to sustain their efforts for the formulation of a good affirmative action policy document in Ghana.
Mrs. Rosaline Ofori Obeng, a Gender and Human Resource Development Consultant, took the participants through the topic: “Using Affirmative Action Initiatives to Enhance Women’s Participation in Governance”.
She explained that affirmative action did not mean the mere appointment of women to key positions, but also supporting them to succeed in their fields of endeavour.
Mr. Ben Banye, the Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education, called on women to change their attitude, mind set and unite to enable them to attain the affirmative action.
He suggested to District Assemblies to allocate one per cent of the District Assembly Common Fund for women development.