The Alliance of Feminists Civil Society Organizations (AFCSOs) has held a day’s forum on Women’s participation in Elections 2024 which took place on Monday ,November 4 to bring together policy makers , female public officials , traditional rulers , diplomats to brainstorm on how to leverage on partnerships across organizations to demand more opportunities for women in Ghana.
The event held at the premises of the British Council in Accra attracted top ranking policymakers , diplomats , journalists and organized women groups to join forces with advocacy from donor partners and the general public to push government to actualize the effective implementation as the polls draw nearer and the number of women contesting in frontline declining over the years which has triggered the concerns of CSOs operating in the space.
Among some of the high ranking guests invited to the thought provoking encounter involved , the Swiss Ambassador to Ghana , H.E Simone Giger , former Gender ,Children and Social Protection Minister in the erstwhile Mahama Administration , Nana Oye Bampoe Addo and a rep of the Guest of Honour , the US Ambassador to Ghana , H.E Virginia Palmer amongst others.
Speaking at the event, Hon. Nana Oye Bampoe Addo intimated that it is long overdue that Ghana as a maturing democracy over the past 3 decades should enforce the will of the Affirmative Action bill which was only recently passed over two years ago to give force to atleast have 30% allocation in all public offices to women in the country, who form the largest part of the over 30 million citizens of Ghana.
She was of the view that the prevailing political environment and social structure was too rough and unpredictable to allow women to grow gradually into positions of power which in the long run will benefit the greater good of society .
” Ghana over the years has developed into an oasis of democratic stability both within and without the African continent and it is quite strange that after so many decades of advocacy on increasing women participation in politics , the Affirmative Action bill which was to give legal arms to the policy was only passed close to a year and half ago although belated.
We have no excuse to keep putting women on the sidelines of mainstream politics in our country, we need to move beyond rhetoric to action , where political parties and governments must be bold enough to put women into key positions of power in such key areas where huge financial resources are devoted into like Defence , Education ,Finance ,Health and Interior to create sustainable impact on their work environments and society”.
Also , the Swiss Ambassador to Ghana, Her Excellency Simone Giger reiterated her resolve that her country maintains strong belief in the ingenuity of the the African woman in general to bring wholistic change to their communities and nations at large.
“Since my duty here in Ghana, i have encountered special and very competent Ghanaian women in various fields of endeavour both home and abroad who are excelling and bringing glory to the motherland. It is about time policymakers and governments to concretize plans to draw more women into higher positions of influence to reflect their rightful place as key dominant section of the Ghanaian populace.
Women of repute like Prof Esi Sutherland in academia , the current Minister of Foreign Affairs ,Hon Shirley Botchwey to mention a few are a group of incredible women who are putting Ghana on the global map, like i have witnessed in my duty tour on the continent,
I believe that with sustained government and social support , these women in various political positions can create a lasting social change in their countries and societies which will provide a learning point for millions of young girls in Ghana and beyond to achieve their dreams in future and as such we at the Swiss Embassy as development partners are ever ready to liaise with the female CSOs and government to give full implementation to the Affirmative Action Bill and to create safe spaces for women to excel and thrive in the political and leadership environment and coexist peacefully with their male counterparts”.
The ceremony also had solidarity messages from Association Of Muslim Women groups, traders , fisherfolk and women trade groups as well as International non governmental organizations like Plan International Ghana , Alliance of Women in Media and a cross section of female traditional leaders with the event climaxed by a panel discussion moderated by celebrated media personality , Berla Mundi of TV3 fame.
