By Bernice Bessey.
The United Nation Development Programme (UNDP) as part of its measures to address leadership failures and equal representation in Africa, especially in Ghana, organized a one-day gender dialogue event improve women participation politics and governance.
The event, “Nkitahodie” dialogue series that seeks to bring on single platform gender activists, practitioners, academics, political parties, and policy makers to examine address the state gender equal participation, and leadership in politics and electoral process in the county.
The UNDP engagement with gender activist groups among others was dubbed “gender equality and women participation in politics and political process in Ghana: the role of political parties.”
Country Director UNDP- Ghana, Dominic Sam welcoming participants from Ghana and other African countries last Thursday in Accra said the dialogue aimed to deconstruct the role of political parties in in promoting gender equal political participation.
Also, he said dialogue hope to reach out to political parties on the role they can play in supporting women inclusive and participation in political processes at all levels.
In the nut shell, the dialogue seeks to provide space for honest and critical reflection on the role of political parties in promoting gender equal participation in politics and political processes.
“One main expected outcome from the dialogue will be a thorough analysis and account of constrains to gender equal participation and leadership in political process in Ghana. It will offer opportunity to political parties, practitioners and advocates to interacts and begin a process of building common group on improving gender balance in Ghana politics,” he stated.
To echo the dialogue beyond the walls of Alisa Hotel where the programme took place and put what had been discussed into action, the Minister of fisheries and Aquaculture, Madam Shirley Aryitey charged women groups to be proactive in ensuring the affirmative bill is made law.
According to her women are the majority in the country, yet the affirmative bill had taken too long a time in the pipeline for parliament to pass it into law.
Madam Aryitey believed that equal participation in governance and electoral processes could only be achieved if the constitution is amended by providing certain concession for women.
She said women are the main source of men victory but they are often relegated to the background when it come position and decision making, adding that to achieve equal representation in governance, barriers that prevents women participation in politics must be eliminated.
To inspire Ghanaian gender groups on the way forward, personalities like Dr. Ekuru Aukot, Former Chair of Selection panel, Independent Electoral and Boundaries (IEBC) – Kenya and Madame Fatou Diop, president-National Gender Observatory, Senegal shared their respective countries experience on achieving some form of balance gender equal participation.
The post UNDP TO STRENGHTEN WOMEN`S IVOLVEMENT IN POLITICS appeared first on The Chronicle - Ghana News.