Book On Affirmative Action Launched (Page 11, July 20 ,2010)

A book on "Affirmative Action and the Prospects for Gender Equality in Ghanaian Politics" written by Dr Dzodzi Tsikata has been launched in Accra.
The book, which talks on injustices in the representation of women in Ghanaian politics, was produced by the women’s advocary groups in collaboration with ABANTU for Development, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) and Women in Broadcasting.
It makes a case for affirmative action on grounds of necessity, legal justification and its value for the attainment of broad developmental goals.
It also examines the experience of affirmation action in Ghana, traces its history, achievements , limitations and continuing challenges. It provides lessons from the successful cases of affirmative action in countries such as South Africa, Rwanda and Uganda and makes proposals and recommendation for a programme of affirmative action in political representation in Ghana.
Launching the book, the Deputy Minister for Women and Children’s Affairs, Hajia Hawawu Boya commended the women's advocacy groups for jointly organising such an important material to analyse past attempts at implementing affirmative action in Ghana.
She said the book justified the need for explicit measures for such an initiative and proposed an agenda for action.
She, however, contended that efforts at increasing women in decision making was growing at a slower pace and that the country had a long way to go, but added that a joint support crusade from all stakeholders would aid women empowerment in the country.
She said "The situation in Ghana is particularly worrisome as the number of women in parliament has decreased from 20, after the 2008 election to 19".
The author, Dr Tsikata, who is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), said the book was a call to action and motivation, as well as provided a learning process and hope for greater chances gender equality in Ghanaian politics.
She said affirmative action had been used in Ghana since independence to address gender and regional imbalances in access to education, health, work and politics.
"While it has had some successes, particularly in improving the male/female ratio in primary education, it has been less effective for improving women's representation in political and public life" she said.
She expressed concern on unavailability of national consensus on affirmative action and urged gender-advocacy groups and individuals, to hold the government accountable to its promise of achieving forty per cent women's representation in government.
Dr Tsikata attributed lower participation of women in politics to lack of financial resources and discrimination against women.
She said for women in power to make a difference, they needed critical minds and at least thirty per cent representation in parliament.
The Regional Director of FES, Mrs Daniela Kuzu said affirmative action was a necessary tool to achieve the goal of having more women in politics, adding that “Women give birth and work in raising families, so why shouldn’t we be included in decision making?".
Mr Nii Nortey Duah, a clinical Psychologist present at the function said women advocacy acts should be seen as an investment in the nation’s development rather than cost to individuals.
The ceremony also saw the awarding of certificates to women who under went a seven- month training in the Women in Politics Training (WIPT) programme.