nimbus news 1 - The Nimbus Foundation

The Ray of Hope
NIMBUSNews
OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER FOR THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
VOLUME 1 SEPT. 2013
CONTENT
CONTENT
1
6
9
12
13
14
Editorial Board
Chairman - Joyce Opoku-Boateng
Member - Patrick Dwamena
Editor-In-Chief - Falilatu Ligali
Graphics Editor - Sanyo Kpodo
Graphics - Bright Owusu
Message from the CEO
1
Reports of Trafficking in Ghana
7
Message from the Editor-In-Chief
2
Traffickers’ Modus Operandi
8
The Rights of Women and
Children – How Far?
2
Domestic Servitude
9
The Rights of Women and Children in
Perspective
3
Child's Right and Protection are
Paramount
3
A Global Phenomenon
Domestic Violence
10-11
Domestic Violence & Health - Its
Effect
12-13
UN Women, Ghana
14
5
Affirmation Action Law
15
Trafficking In Persons (TIP)
5
Celebrating Legendary Women
17
Ghana a Source, Transit and Destination
Country for Human Trafficking
6
Sketch on Domestic Violence
20
MESSAGE
FROM THE CEO
WOMEN'S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS
Joyce Opoku-Boateng
Founder/CEO
No society can develop when more than half of its
population live in abject poverty, and suffer violence
and discrimination by virtue of their gender and
vulnerability. Atrocity meted out to women and
children in the name of culture, tradition or religion is
blight on the nation's conscience. Violence against
women and children must be abolished.
The State's obligation to promote the rights of
women and children cannot be compromised or
diminished but rather should be progressively
enhanced in line with international conventions
and protocols that Ghana has ratified or signed up
to as well as the Constitution of Ghana.
he fact that women suffer discrimination on the proactive in their reportage of gender-based
basis of their gender is a truth universally violence, a rampant feature of the daily news. This is
acknowledged. In many societies, women are an urgent call on government to commit more
considered as inferior to men and are therefore denied resources to dealing with women and children's
certain basic rights such as the right to education, rights violations which include domestic violence,
healthcare, property, the right to participate in human trafficking, child labour, child prostitution and
decision-making (even in matters affecting their own pornography etc.
lives). Discrimination against women is so ingrained in So long as women and children's rights continue to
culture and tradition, that public education over the be violated and not enough is being committed by
years to raise awareness about practices that militate Government to promote and protect those rights, so
against women's empowerment for socio-economic long should the campaign to raise awareness about
development has received mixed reaction and abuses and to ensure Government compliance with
acceptance. Women human rights activists have international and constitutional obligations continue
employed various strategies, including legislation, and be rejuvenated.
advocacy etc. to bring the issue to the fore and to THE PURPOSE OF NIMBUS NEWS is to be the
compel national governments to elevate women's mouthpiece of the voiceless women and children - to
human rights to the same pedestal as other civil rights highlight the successes, challenges and constraints in
and liberties.
the fight for gender equality and recommend best
In 2001, the government of Ghana established the practices through its informative and thoughtMinistry for Women and Children's Affairs (now provoking articles, thereby changing the mindset of
Ministry of Gender Children and Social Protection) with members of society and policymakers in the quest to
the mandate to promote the rights of women and raise the living standards of women and children, for
children. Given its central management or cross-cutting development and socio-cultural renaissance.
status and cabinet ranking, the Ministry is strategically
placed to ensure that gender and children concerns are I believe in the innate power of women to change
made an integral part of the work of all other ministries, the course of our society. It is for women to realize
departments and agencies – that is gender main our potential and take charge.
streaming.
In 2013, the name of the Ministry was changed and its
mandate expanded to include other vulnerable groups
such as people living with disability. This expansion of
mandate without the commensurate expansion of
budgetary allocation definitely would have far-reaching
implications particularly in the allocation of resources
for gender-specific social interventions. For instance,
women development loans and other schemes would
now be stretched to cater for an even wider population,
and therefore of minimal impact on women.
The media must be commended for being very
T
Page 2
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
human mind, and therefore will employ positive graphic imagery and
documentary evidence to convey our message to our readers and audience.
Women are the drivers of economic growth and prosperity. It is for women
(Editor-In-Chief)
Falilatu Ligali
to realize their potential and take charge.
CEO (EXPLICIT IMPRESSIONS LTD)
THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN – HOW FAR?
n the year 2012 a former Minister for Women
and Children's Affairs, Alhajia Boya….. was
assaulted publicly by persons she claimed to be agents
of the Presidential candidate of the ruling party. There
was a brief public outcry, then a denial by the alleged
perpetrators, then silence….. A situational irony! If the
vanguard for women rights promotion and protection is
herself a victim of assault and is not protected, then how
much less the ordinary woman whose. Her cry will not
receive the media attention and then what happens is
anybody's business.
91- year old lady who initiated, championed and substantially
financed the construction of the National Hockey Stadium was
honoured in 2004, by naming the stadium after her as an achiever, and a role
model for women empowerment. In July 2013, the Mayor of the Accra
Metropolitan Assembly publicly stripped the old woman of the honour and
renamed the Stadium after the late President Atta Mills as a monument in his
honour. Again the public outrage erupted for a couple of days. Quickly the
government distanced itself from the Mayor's action, and as a token, the
President visited the old lady in her house and promised to reverse the
Mayor's decision. Again the proverbial silence and the matter was swept
under the carpet.
oung girls are trafficked within and outside of the
country on a daily basis with promises of better
lives. These children are caught in a web of bonded
slavery, prostitution and other exploitative situations,
sadly in the clear view of government officials, and yet
little or nothing is being done to stem the tide.
hild Labour – the statistics are damning. ILO reports show that
child labour in Ghana is on the increase. The denial by government only
adds to the problem, as it is downplayed and not given the needed resources
for its eradication.
Government's Commitment to Women's Empowerment - Are we
walking the talk? Government should increase the Gender Ministry's
budgetary allocation in line with its expanded mandate
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
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Nimbus News
Nimbus foundation believes and appreciates the power of images on the
Nimbus News
THE RIGHTS OF
WOMEN AND CHILDREN
IN PERSPECTIVE
WOMEN'S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS
he struggle and advancement made in raising
T women
and children's rights to levels where they can be
enforced in the law court is often taken for granted, or even
denied. Countries that have accepted the reality of gender
inequality and have taken pragmatic steps to address the
imbalance, recognizing that gender is a social construct and a
vehicle for development, are reaping its immense benefits. It
has not come on a silver platter, though.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), adopted
on 10th December 1948 was a result of the experience of the
Second World War. The International Community vowed
never to allow atrocities like those of that conflict happen
again. The UDHR broadly guarantees every human being
equal rights to life, dignity, prosperity, etc without
discrimination.
Recognizing that women's human rights continue to be
violated under the guise of cultural norms and usages, and
the very patriarchal nature of most societies, the Convention
on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against
Women (CEDAW) was promulgated by the United Nations in
1979 to specifically deal with women's rights.
CEDAW has gone further to spell out measures that State
Parties should undertake to eradicate discrimination against
women and raise issues affecting women to the highest level
of governance. To this end State Parties are enjoined to
report periodically to the United Nations on what efforts they
are making to eradicate discrimination against women and to
bridge the disparity between men and women for
accelerated national development.
In addition to the CEDAW there are UN Declarations such as
the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against
Women (DEVAW, 1993), the Beijing Declaration and Platform
for Action(1995), The Millennium Development Goals,
[2000] (Goal 3 deals with promoting gender equality and
empowering Women). These instruments set measurable
targets and timeframes for State Parties to achieve gender
equality and women's empowerment as well as eradicate
gender-based violence and inimical cultural practices which
hinder women's socio-economic advancement.
The Protocol to the African Charter of Human and People's
Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (2003) aims to
ensure that the status of the African woman improves
significantly. In addition to amplifying the provisions in
CEDAW and the other declarations, the Protocol specifically
provides among others that the minimum age of marriage for
women shall be 18 years. This will ensure that young girls and
boys are guaranteed equal opportunity and access to
education.
The 1992 Constitution guarantees women's rights and
empowers Parliament to enact laws that will promote the
rights of women. Laws including the Intestate Succession
Law (as amended), the Human Trafficking Act, the Domestic
Violence Act etc. have been enacted to deal with specific
violations which impact the lives of women. The Property
Rights of Spouses Bill is yet to receive Parliamentary approval
seeks to give clearer guidance in property issues before,
during and after marriage. It is important that the
implementation and review of such laws are sustained and
given the needed impetus.
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CHILD'S RIGHT
AND PROTECTION
ARE PARAMOUNT
“Children's Rights are Human Rights”
Children constitute a vulnerable segment of society
and need special protection.The adage that “a child
should be seen and not be heard” is one pregnant
with meaning and raises fundamental issues.
How should a child be seen?
Who listens to the child if he should be heard at
all?
To what extent are parental obligations,
discretion and control monitored, and by
whom?
What are the State's obligations for the
welfare of the child?
Child rights are enforceable human rights
guaranteed by Article 28 of the 1992 Constitution,
which affirm Ghana's international obligation and
commitment under the UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child (1989). The Children's Act 1998,
Act 560, which specifically deals with child
protection and enforcement has as its central
theme:“the paramountcy of the best interest of the
child”.
The Children's Act defines a child as a person below
the age of eighteen years. The child is entitled to
parental care and must live in a peaceful
environment for his/her survival and development.
Parental duty and responsibility and the State's
obligations are clearly set out in the Act. Each
District Authority is enjoined to establish a Child
Panel to investigate and prosecute child rights
violations within the district.
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
HUMAN
TRAFFICKING
TRAFFICKING
IN PERSONS
MODERN DAY
SLAVERY
Trafficking In Persons (TIP)
CBC 2013-08-22 (British Columbia) Canada
Leticia Sarmiento was a modern-day slave, working
16 hours a day, 7 days a week as nanny for a wealthy
family in British Columbia, said the Crown as it urged
a Judge to hand over sentence for her employer that
will deter others from trafficking vulnerable women.
Franco Yiu Kwan Orr was found guilty in June 2013 of
human trafficking for bringing Sarmiento with his
family to Canada, where she earned $500 a month
to care for his three children. “It was a crime of
greed and it was a crime of control”, Crown lawyer
Peter Prairie pointed out. “He kept her as a virtual
slave”
“I have not seen my children since 2007 when I left
Philippines for Hong Kong. In 2010 I stopped having
income to send home, so my kids stopped going to
school” stated Mrs Sarmiento. She was not allowed
to socialize, her passport was taken away, and she
shared a room with the couple's youngest child.
A GLOBAL
PHENOMENON
he trade in human beings or slave trade was
T abolished
by the British Parliament in 1807 with
the enactment of the Slave Trade Act. Leading the
Abolitionist Movement was William Wilberforce, a
British politician, evangelist and philanthropist. He
challenged politicians and society at large thus:
“You may choose to look the other way but you can
never say that you did not know.”
Sadly, the slave trade, now termed modern trade
slavery/human trafficking/trafficking in persons, a
multi-billion dollar business, has reared its monstrous
head again in more sophisticated and clandestine
fashion. The traffickers target young girls of below the
age of 18 or in their 20s, luring them with glamorous
modeling and movie offers on the websites, and
eventually selling them to brothels or wealthy men or
barons for sexual exploits and domestic servitude,
among others.
In 2006 the then US Secretary of State, Condoleezza
Rice made this emotional appeal to the society of our
day:
“…..Two hundred years ago, the British Parliament
outlawed the trans-Atlantic trade, culminating
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decades-long struggle led by William
Wilberforce……..Defeating human trafficking is a
great moral calling of our day…..All nations that
are resolute in the fight to end human trafficking
have partner in the United States. Together we will
continue to affirm that no human life can be
devalued or discounted. Together we will stop at
nothing to end the debasement of our fellow men
and women. And together we will bring forth a
world of fuller hope, a world where people enjoy
the full blessing of their God-given liberty.”
In June 2013 the US Department of State released
the 2013 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. Yet
again the clarion call was made by the Secretary of
State, John Kerry thus:
“When we help countries to prosecute traffickers,
we are strengthening the rule of law. When we
bring victims out of exploitation, we are helping to
create more stable and productive communities.
When we stop this crime from happening in the first
place, we are preventing the abuse of those who
are victimized as well as the ripple effect that
caused damage throughout communities in our
environment and which corrupt our global supply
chains. We all have an interest in stopping this
crime. That's why President Obama is so focused
on this issue. And that's why as Secretary of State, I
will continue to make the fight against modern-day
slavery a priority for this Department and the
country.”
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
TRAFFICKING
GHANA A SOURCE, TRANSIT
AND DESTINATION COUNTRY FOR
PREVALENT IN GHANA HUMAN TRAFFICKING
It was noted in the report that Ghana's efforts
towards combating the heinous crime of human
trafficking need to be more vigorous and
sustained. On the way forward to move from Tier
2 to Tier 1 and be at par with countries like
Germany, Armenia, United Kingdom, USA and
others, some recommendations made by the 2013
TIP report include the following:
Increase efforts to investigate and prosecute
trafficking offences, and convict and punish
offenders;
T
he 2013 Trafficking in Persons Report
released by the USA Department of State on
13th June highlighted countries' achievements or lack
of it in the global fight to eradicate human trafficking.
Ghana's ranking has remained at Tier 2 since 2005,
when it dropped from its Tier 1 status. It is worthy to
note that Ghana was one of the first countries to
enact a national law, outlawing human trafficking.
Therefore the spotlight on Ghana in the global fight is
not misplaced. The country should be doing more to
reassert itself as a Tier 1 country.
The clarion call!
To affirm the country's resolve in this global fight, it is
incumbent on the country to ratify the Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons,
Especially Women and Children, supplementing the
United Nations Convention Against Transnational
Crime (the Palermo Protocol). The US Trafficking
Victim Protection Act (TVPA) sets the framework and
standards useful in preventing and combating human
trafficking. The Tier ranking is based on the extent of
compliance with the minimum standards set by the
TVPA.
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
Ensure the Anti Human Trafficking Unit of the
Police has adequate resources to conduct law
enforcement;
Train law enforcement personnel to proactively
identify trafficking victims among vulnerable
population – such as females in prostitution and
children working in agriculture – and refer them
to protective services;
Adopt the Legislative Instrument to implement
effectively the 2005 Human Trafficking Act;
Increase government funding for protective
services to victims including the Human
Trafficking Fund;
Ensure the maintenance of governmentoperated shelters;
Improve data collection and reporting of victims
identified and assisted;
Reinstate the quarterly meetings of the Human
Trafficking Management Board to implement
the National Plan of Action on Human
Trafficking
Accede to the 2000 UN TIP Protocol.
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Nimbus News
HUMAN
Nimbus News
REPORTS OF
TRAFFICKING IN GHANA
Page 8
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
Traffickers’ Modus Operandi
They come in different shades,
with sugar-coated words to lure
their victims
They target girls under 18 years
of age or in their mid-twenties
- watch out !
Personal revenge – jilted
boyfriends, spurned wooers –
reminds one of the Joseph
story in the Bible, when his own
brothers sold him into slavery
as an alternative for murdering
him.
They place adverts on websites
that teenage girls frequent, offering
glamorous jobs as models, or
roles in movies or hot new bands
They proposition a girl online
and arrange for a secret
meeting
People in positions of trust and
respect, supposedly protecting
young people - Law enforcement
officers, school counselors, or
clergy –motivated by greed, end
up abusing the trust of the very
people who have come
to them seeking for help.
Traffickers may be relatives –
unscrupulous and greedy
relatives
Traffickers may be strangers
Beware
of the big
bad wolf,
lurking in
the dark,
waiting to
prey on its
victim
Page 9
Nimbus News
DOMESTIC SERVITUDE
AN ASPECT OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING
“Because domestic work is carried out largely behind closed doors, these
[workers] are particularly vulnerable to hazardous and exploitative conditions
and are often subject to sexual harassment, and mental and physical abuse.”
Secretary Of State John F. Kerry
E
ach year, this Report takes an unflinching view
at human trafficking around the world. What
governments are doing, and what they are failing to
do. And, each year, as a group we select the
photographs that accompany the Report. Through
these images, readers have had to confront the reality
of the sex trade, the plight of manual laborers, the
often hidden abuse of domestic workers, and the
historical legacy of slavery. None of it is pleasant, but it
must be confronted.
The testimony of their bodies. Bearing witness to the
torture that they withstood, alone and behind closed
doors. The amputated fingers of Nour Miyati in the
2006 Report. The X-ray of the nails driven into the
hands, legs, and forehead of a Sri Lankan maid in 2011.
The burns of Siti Hara in the 2010 Report. Of Shewaye
(suffered at the hands of the Qadafi family) in 2012.
And, this year, the unnamed 12 year-old in Thailand,
seen only from the back, as police and reporters gaze
on her naked and burned body.
We know that these images provoke. They demand
that we confront what happens in secret. They make
us contemplate why someone would torture the very
person who they trust to raise their child or clean their
home. To understand why experienced antitrafficking investigators can recognize at a glance the
distinctive scars from the point of an iron, a wire
hanger, or a pot of boiling water. To wonder whether
we did enough to find and help them. To ask the hard
questions about whether we are condoning,
contributing, accepting. These images horrify and
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anger and compel. And they hopefully trigger
action.
But these are just snapshots of people at one
terrible stage in their lives.
There are other images in this Report as well. Of
survivors. Insisting on their rights; insisting on the
lives for which they had hoped. Standing with
Presidents and Congresswomen. Marching and
advocating. Demanding rights for domestic workers
in the International Labor Organization and other
fora. Helping others who have been through the
fire.
Survivors such as the members of the survivors'
caucus pictured on the facing page are proof that
when people come out from behind those closed
doors they are powerful and capable. That when
there are governments who recognize them, NGOs
who support them, and change in the societies that
tolerate these abuses, survivors' voices can be
heard not just in courtrooms and police stations, but
in the halls of Congress and parliaments.
You have seen the images. You have read their
accounts and the country narratives. In the words of
trafficking survivor Tina Frundt, now executive
director of a service provider, “Now that you have
the knowledge, what will you do with it?”
“I feel like I am powerful in the sense that I can
be a role model to others. They will see that,
despite what happened to me, because of my
hard work and perseverance, I have now
succeeded in life.”
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE
IS A CRIME
IT IS A
VIOLATION OF
HUMAN
RIGHTS
Nimbus News
Ethiopian maid found burned and suffering in Muammar
Qaddafi's son Hannibal and his wife Aline Skaf home
· by Ethiopia forums
· August 29, 2011
In soft tones, she explained how Aline lost her temper
when her daughter wouldn’t stop crying and Mullah
refused to beat the child.
“She took me to a bathroom. She tied my hands behind
my back, and tied my feet. She taped my mouth, and she
started pouring the boiling water on my head like this,”
she said, imitating the vessel of scalding hot water being
poured over her head.
CNN reporter didn't expect the horror and brutality of
this kind in one of Gaddafi's son Hannibal lavish
beachfront house in Tripoli while he and his crew filming
the excessive life style of Hannibal and his wife, the
former Lebanese model, Aline Skaf.
The following is how CNN international correspondent
Dan Rivers found Ethiopian Shweyga Mullah and her
story
Shweyga Mullah been the nanny to Hannibal's little son
and daughter.As we were about to leave, one of the staff
told us there was a nanny who worked for Hannibal
Gadhafi who might speak to us. He said she'd been burnt
by Hannibal's wife, Aline.I thought he meant perhaps a
cigarette stubbed out on her arm. Nothing prepared me for
the moment I walked into the room to see Shweyga
Mullah.
As we were about to leave, one of the staff told us there
was a nanny who worked for Hannibal Gadhafi who might
speak to us. He said she’d been burnt by Hannibal’s wife,
Aline.
I thought he meant perhaps a cigarette stubbed out on her
arm. Nothing prepared me for the moment I walked into
the room to see ShweygaMullah.
At first I thought she was wearing a hat and something over
her face. Then the awful realization dawned that her entire
scalp and face were covered in red wounds and scabs, a
mosaic of injuries that rendered her face into a grotesque
patchwork.
Even though the burns were inflicted three months ago,
she was clearly still in considerable pain. But she told us her
story calmly.
She peeled back the garment draped carefully over her
body. Her chest, torso and legs are all mottled with scars
— some old, some still red, raw and weeping. As she
spoke, clear liquid oozed from one nasty open wound on
her head.
After one attack, “There were maggots coming out of my
head, because she had hidden me, and no one had seen
me,” Mullah said.
Eventually, a guard found her and took her to a hospital,
where she received some treatment.
But when Aline Gadhafi found out about the kind actions
of her co-worker, he was threatened with imprisonment,
if he dared to help her again.
Hannibal Gaddafi and his wife Aline Scaf who torchered
and burned their nanny “When she did all this to me, for
three days, she wouldn’t let me sleep,” Mullah said. “I
stood outside in the cold, with no food. She would say to
staff, ‘If anyone gives her food, I’ll do the same to you.’ I
had no water — nothing.”
Her colleague, a man from Bangladesh who didn’t want to
give his name, says he was also regularly beaten and
slashed with knives. He corroborated Mullah’s account
and says the family’s dogs were treated considerably
better than the staff.
Mullah was forced to watch as the dogs ate and she was
left to go hungry, he said.
It seems to sum up how the workers at the beachside
complex were viewed by the Gadhafi family.
“I worked a whole year they didn’t give me one penny,”
Mullah said. “Now I want to go to the hospital. I have no
money. I have nothing.”
She starts sobbing gently — an utterly pitiful scene
She’d been the nanny to Hannibal’s little son and daughter.
The 30-year-old came to Libya from her native Ethiopia a
year ago. At first things seemed OK, but then six months
into her employment she said she was burned by Aline.
Three months later the same thing happened again, this
time much more seriously.
Page 12
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
THE HOME SHOULD BE A CRADLE OF LOVE AND SECURITY AND NOT A DEN
OF HORROR, SEXUAL ABUSE, INTIMIDATION AND DEPRIVATION
That the home is a reflection of the larger society, the state,
cannot be over-emphasized. After all the personal is
political
“ 'Tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus. Our bodies are our
garden, to which our wills are gardeners: so that if we will
plant nettles, or sow lettuce, set hyssop ands up tine, supply
it with one gender of herbs, or distract it with many, either to
have it sterile with idleness, or manured with industry, why the
power and corrigible authority of this lies in our wills
Williams Shakespeare, Othello
To make the home a garden of roses, the cause is in the
Will of Government and our collective wills.
HOW MUCH IS BEING COMMITTED TO THIS ALLIMPORTANT ISSUE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE BY
GOVERNMENT?
The Domestic Violence Act 2006 was passed to address
the gaps in the existing laws, by giving greater
protection to victims of assault within the domestic
arena. It defines domestic violence to include physical,
sexual, emotional, verbal and psychological abuse of a
person, by someone in a domestic relationship. This
includes economic abuse, intimidation harassment,
damage to property or any other controlling or abusive
behavior towards a complainant, where such conduct
harms, or may cause imminent harm to the safety,
health or well being of the complainant.
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
A domestic relationship may be defined as a
relationship between a complainant and a
respondent in any of the following:
a. Are or were married to each other, including
marriage under the Ordinance or customary
marriage
b. They live together in a relationship (boyfriendgirlfriend relationship) though not married
c. Parents or guardian of a child or expecting a child
or foster parents
d. Family member related by consanguinity, affinity
or adoption
e. They share or have shared the same residence or
are co-tenants
f. House-help in the household of the respondent
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Nimbus News
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE & HEALTH - ITS EFFECT
Nimbus News
THE EFFECTS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
ON THE HEALTH OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN
Studies show that Domestic Violence has long-term health effects on victims who are primarily women and
children. The effects from assault that battered women and children suffer include:
Chronic pain
Gastrointestinal disorders
Psychosomatic symptoms
Eating problems
Mental Health problems such as anxiety, post-traumatic
stress disorder
Sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS
Kidney infections
Women who have been sexually abused tend to
resort to unsafe abortions
Domestic violence ultimately result in death of the victim
Women are responsible for procreation and for the very survival of the society. Issues relating to
women's well being must therefore not be put on the back burner of financial considerations.
Page 14
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
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Bolgatanga
Tamale
GHANA
Sunyani
Efua Ansre
Kumasi
Country Director
for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
UN Women Ghana provides support for the Government of Ghana through the Ministry of Women and Children's
Affairs (MoWAC), the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Institute of Local Government Studies
(ILGS), Ministry of Finance of Economic Planning (MoFEP) and the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) to incorporate
gender concerns in national development processes. UN Women also provides support to CSOs including the
media on gender responsive issues. UN Women Ghana is active at four critical levels – operations, research &
analysis, advocacy, and operational programs & monitoring – in order to achieve outcomes in its priority areas:
Priority 1: Expanding women's voice, leadership, and participation
Priority 2: Ending violence against women
Priority 3: Enhancing women's economic empowerment
Priority 4: Making gender equality priorities central to local, national and sectoral planning and budgeting
For the year 2011, UN Women has been very committed to gender mainstreaming in national planning processes
has been very influential. The GRB programmes embarked on by the country office has resulted in a provision of a
platform for discussion and exchange of information on new and emerging issues on gender statistics,
strengthening partnerships and collaboration in the development of gender statistics and generate gender
responsive policies, and developing strategies to promote use of gender statistics.
In this same year, UN Women and UNDP, in collaboration with Institute of Economic Affairshave launched the first
ever Gender and Development Dialogue Series. The series of public lectures is just one of the strategies UN
Women is using to accelerate the pace of women empowerment and ensuring that a gender perspective is
mainstreamed in all policies and programmes at the district, regional and national levels.
Furthermore, the two-year gender and climate change programme titled “Building Capacities to Influence Climate
Change Policies from a Gender Perspective” ended in December 2011. The programme is expected to achieve
long term impacts on the promotion of women's rights and gender responsiveness in Ghana's climate change
policy making, mitigation and adaptation measures. Livelihood support projects have been launched in three out
of the ten regions of Ghana.
→ Outlook for 2012-2013
The Country programme 2012-2013 will build on the programme on gender equality and aid effectiveness aimed
at mainstreaming gender in national development processes. The programme will build on existing structures,
processes and strategies including support to strengthening the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs
(MOWAC), especially the GRB-MU. This is to facilitate the implementation of government policy on agriculture
modernisation, the National Plans of Action on Domestic Violence, UNSCR 1325and the national response to HIV
and AIDS.
VIOLENCE AGAINST
A WOMAN
IS VIOLENCE AGAINST
A SISTER.
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Nimbus News
AFFIRMATION ACTION LAW
TO BE ENACTED TO STRENGTHEN DEMOCRACY IN GHANA
Hillary Gbedemah
Ghana’s Representative at the CEDAW
democratic system requires meaningful
A participation
of all marginalized groups
including women. Women make up almost 52% of
Ghana's population, and yet they have a relatively
low influence in decision making on economic, social,
political and cultural issues. The significant role
women play towards national development and
national economic prosperity is often overlooked.
Women in Ghana are engaged in various economic
activities and dominate the informal small to medium
scale agriculture, manufacturing and services sectors
of the Ghanaian economy. In fact, women make up
52% of the agricultural workforce and contribute 32%
of the gross domestic product. Women also make up
95% of agro-processing and 85% of food distribution
labour forces. Additionally, women play the role of
primary care-givers within the family and community
setting. Education, health, sanitation, social and
development process within the home and
community are primarily provided by them. Women
Pictures
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thus play critical social and economic roles within
the Ghanaian setting and their representation in
governance and nation building is essential in
Ghana's growth and development.
The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) in a bid to
ensuring that Ghana takes a bold step towards
gender parity and equality is carrying out a project to
address the under-representation of women in the
political decision-making process. The project is in
collaboration with the EU-funded European
Partnership for Democracy (EPD).
The Ministry of Gender,
Children and Social
Protection is spearheading the process for the
development of an Affirmative Action Bill as a
strategy for achieving gender equality in line
Articles 17 (4) (a), 35 (5) and 36 (6) (b) of the 1992
Constitution, which mandate Parliament to enact
specific laws to correct social, economic,
educational and geographical imbalance.
From IEA Publication on “Affirmative Action:
Strengthening Democracy in Ghana
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
From IEA Publication on “Affirmative Action:
Strengthening Democracy in Ghana
Will the passage of the law see the light of day? Will
the male-dominated Parliament buy into ceding
more space and power to women in the interest of
the promotion of national development?
There is no gainsay that the state is made up of a
collection of communities which in turn is made up of
a collection of homes. If we all agree that women have
from time immemorial been the driving force for the
THE NIMBUS FOUNDATION
Nimbus News
Pictures
running, building and sustenance of the home and
family, then it is time for them to translate that
experience into nation building at the highest
echelons of power.
Ghana, which has always been considered as a
beacon of hope and enlightenment in Africa should
spearhead the Gender equality and women's
empowerment agenda as a critical tool for social
transformation.
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Nimbus News
CELEBRATING LEGENDARY WOMEN
Empower Women For National Development
HONOURABLE GLADYS ASMAH, A Mother, Politician & Visionary
(Former MP for Takoradi)
· Premier Minister for Women and Children's Affairs
· Premier Minister for Fisheries
he Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs was established in January 2001, by Executive
Instrument E.I 8, with the mandate to promote and co-ordinate gender equality and children's
rights as an integral part of government's development agenda.
T
Known for her natural grace and capacity to surmount challenges, it is no wonder, Hon. Gladys Asmah
was the one selected to set up the Ministry. Like the baby in her lap, Honourable Gladys Asmah
(affectionately called Mama) nurtured the Ministry from cradle to a full-blown Ministry.
She worked from her lap, because she had no desk. With her thin staff, she laboured tirelessly to get
the Ministry where it is today. Thanks to the American Embassy, the Ministry is housed in a chic and
imposing building, symbolic of the beauty of gender equality.
It is her dream that the Ministry will progressively expand to impact more on the lives of women and
children in Ghana.
ADVERTISING & MARKETING SERVICES,
PRE-PRESS, COMMERCIAL PRINTING
LOCATION: HSE NO. E172/17 YARBOI CRESCENT STREET,
NEAR MAMOBI POLYCLINIC, MAMOBI - ACCRA
TEL: +233 302 236000
EMAIL: [email protected]
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