Women empowerment fund managers urged to adopt proactive strategies
Managers of the Women in Local Governance Fund have been called upon to use more proactive strategies and target the public and private sectors to gather more resources to push more women into public life.
The call was made at a day’s seminar to assess work done in the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC) capacity building project for females in the 2010 District Assembly elections.
The fund, established by MOWAC and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development together with some women’s groups, was launched in 2006 to support women who aspire to become assembly members.
In 2006, it was envisaged that the fund would raise four billion cedis but only GH¢356,600,000.00 was realized and disbursed to the 1,783 female candidates who vied for the 2006 local level elections.
Madam Patience Asem, a gender activist and researcher, said prior to the 2006 and 2010 Assembly elections, MOWAC organized capacity building workshops for the women contestants.
She said insufficient funding in 2010, reduced the number of women intended to benefit from the project, dubbed the District Capacity 20 Project, from an estimated 3,400 to under 500.
Mrs Patience Opoku, an Acting Director at MOWAC, said the District Capacity 20 project is aimed at involving the district assemblies to identify 20 women at the local level whose capacities would be built to enable them vie for assembly elections.
She said work is on going to ensure that a piece of legislation on Affirmative Action is ready before next year’s general elections.
By Eunice Menka
Managers of the Women in Local Governance Fund have been called upon to use more proactive strategies and target the public and private sectors to gather more resources to push more women into public life.
The call was made at a day’s seminar to assess work done in the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs (MOWAC) capacity building project for females in the 2010 District Assembly elections.
The fund, established by MOWAC and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development together with some women’s groups, was launched in 2006 to support women who aspire to become assembly members.
In 2006, it was envisaged that the fund would raise four billion cedis but only GH¢356,600,000.00 was realized and disbursed to the 1,783 female candidates who vied for the 2006 local level elections.
Madam Patience Asem, a gender activist and researcher, said prior to the 2006 and 2010 Assembly elections, MOWAC organized capacity building workshops for the women contestants.
She said insufficient funding in 2010, reduced the number of women intended to benefit from the project, dubbed the District Capacity 20 Project, from an estimated 3,400 to under 500.
Mrs Patience Opoku, an Acting Director at MOWAC, said the District Capacity 20 project is aimed at involving the district assemblies to identify 20 women at the local level whose capacities would be built to enable them vie for assembly elections.
She said work is on going to ensure that a piece of legislation on Affirmative Action is ready before next year’s general elections.
By Eunice Menka