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Stakeholders in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Municipality have been sensitised to Ghana’s Gender Affirmative Action law (gender equity) Act 2024, as part of ongoing efforts to promote equal opportunities and push for fair representation of women in leadership and decision-making spaces.
The event, held at Elmina last Wednesday, formed part of the She Leads project implemented by the Women Aspire Network.
The event brought together civil society organisations (CSOs), female traditional authorities, legal practitioners, assembly members and officials from the Department of Gender, Children and Social Protection.
The sensitisation focused on ensuring that the Affirmative Action law not only exists in policy but becomes effective in practice, with communities actively supporting women to lead.
Participants expressed concerns, observations, and commitments on ways to achieve gender equity at the local level.
A legal practitioner and a coordinator of the Affirmative Action Law Coalition, Becky Enyonam Ahadzi, who led the session, questioned the belief that gender equality had already been achieved.
“People believe it’s changing because we now see a few women in top positions. But in reality, how many women are we seeing?” she queried.
She pointed out that most women in leadership were surrounded by men, making it difficult for them to influence outcomes.
Using Parliament as an example, she noted that only 41 women currently serve out of 275 members.
In the cabinet, two of the 19 members were women, while 12 of the 60 ministers were female.
She added that though women were visible in some institutions, especially the Judiciary, the overall numbers remained low.
Ms Ahadzi stressed the need to monitor budget allocations and follow up on whether resources were being channelled into programmes that supported women.
“Advocating for women doesn’t mean putting unqualified women in positions,” she said, adding, “It means giving qualified women the space to contribute.”
She also encouraged men to support women, especially regarding finances.
According to her, many women had the competence to contest leadership roles, even against men, but were often limited by a lack of funding.
“Some women can do great things, but money remains a barrier.
This is where men can lend their support,” she added.
The Municipal Chief Executive of KEEA, Ismail Zagoon-Saeed, addressing the gathering, noted that sometimes women failed to support one another.
He said that when another woman approached a woman in authority, the response was often cold and unhelpful.
The Central Regional Director of the Department of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), Richlove Amamoo, said the Affirmative Action law would now give the Ministry of Gender the legal support needed to demand results.
“Without the law, we have only been appealing. Now, it has become a mandate,” she said.
The Eno hen of Anomabo, Nana Akruf VI, added her voice by noting that queen mothers were well-placed in their communities to understand the issues women faced, but culture and appearance sometimes prevented women from rising.
She called on families to support women and enable them to contest for chieftaincy and other leadership roles.
A participant and a gender desk officer at the KEEA Assembly, Cecilia Tuffour, noted that confidence-building should start from home.
She encouraged parents to train boys and girls equally and allow girls to grow up believing they could lead.
Speaking on the project, a legal practitioner and the Women Aspire Network Team lead, Araba Annan, said the “She Leads” initiative was launched in 2021 to encourage young girls and women to challenge harmful cultural norms and gender stereotypes that hinder their development.
