In 1994, out of a total number of 4,204 elected members of the Assembly, only 122 representing 2.9 per cent were women and only 11 women were appointed as District Chief Executives in 2013.     

More so in the 2015 Assembly elections,   1,182 women participated compared to 17,756 men.

This was made known in an address read by Ms Comfort Asante, New Juaben North Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) on behalf of Mr Eric Kwakye Darfour, the Eastern Regional Minister, at a national sensitisation effort to encourage more women to participate in the district assembly elections.

The programme was organized by the Institute of Local Government Studies (ILGS), National Association of Local Authorities of Ghana (NALAC) and the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee (IMCC) on decentralisation.

Mr Darfour said the programme seeks to empower aspiring women assembly members and ensure a massive participation in local governance activities.

He said women involvement in the decision making processes is very critical not only because they constitute the majority of the population in the country but they are most often discriminated against and under-represented in the socio-economic and political activities of the country.

Mr Darfour urged NALAC, Non-Governmental Organizations, political parties and all stakeholders to put in place appropriate policies, programmes and legislations that will bring social change and attract more women into local governance.

He called on parents to take advantage of the Free Senior High School policy and enroll their wards so that they can acquire knowledge and skills needed for the development of the society.

Mr Darfour also urged women to engage in economic generation activities and aid in the nation building effort.

Ms Evelyn Danso, Second Vice President of NALAG, expressed worry that only two females were selected amongst the National Executive Committee of NALAG which has 16 members.

She appealed to men to support women to attain higher heights as their contributions to the nation's development cannot be understated.