Minister for Information, Mr Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, says President Nana Addo Akufo-Addo’s comment on gender parity at the 2019 Women Deliver Conference in Vancouver, Canada, has been misinterpreted.
According to Mr Oppong-Nkrumah, the President only meant that it was needful for women to step up and push for matters that are important to them.
President Akufo-Addo at the conference suggested that not enough movement is being made by women to take up key positions in governance; and that though women occupy 30 percent of his Cabinet, he is not seeing enough dynamism and activism from the women.
“In 2008, when he was selecting a Vice-Presidential candidate, his first choice was a woman. In 2012, he was the one who argued that women potential candidates in the New Patriotic Party should be protected and should be given less of a fee to pay when they contest. The President has been one of our strongest champions for gender parity in our public life,” he stated on Citi FM, monitored by Adomonline.
He further said the president is very committed to gender equality and it is evident in the number of female appointees in his administration.
“He is by far the President of Ghana who has appointed the largest number of women in his administration. His commitment to gender parity is not in question,” the Information Minister stated.
Mr Oppong-Nkrumah, also explained that the President’s comment did not seek to undermine efforts made by women generally but rather encourage them to do more.
“One of the things he feels is missing is to see a lot more dynamism in the fight, dynamism demonstrated by the women themselves, that the women themselves need to forcefully put up the fight where it matters most,” he added.
Background
Gender activists at the Women Deliver Conference in Canada expressed disappointment in President Akufo-Addo over his submission on women empowerment in Ghana.
One of the female panelists, Dr Alaa Murabit, the United Nation’s High Commissioner on Health Employment and Economic Growth, was ruffled by the president’s position and could be seen interrupting the president spontaneously.
She charged the president to “open the door” to women in Ghana whom she believed are qualified and empowered enough to participate prominently in his government.
Source: Nana Aba Mensah | Adomonline
