Public Agenda (Accra)
Baba Yaro Kofi
17 November 2008
Pusu-Namongo — Northern women politicians have urged government to establish Leadership Training Institutes for women in the three Northern Regions to help train women in leadership skills.
According to the women, the establishment of such institutes is an effective strategy that government and other stakeholders can employ to help address the poverty situation in the north and bridge the north-south development gap.
They noted that when many women are empowered, they can effectively contribute to the socio-economic development of the nation.
They made the appeal at a capacity building workshop organized by Women's Manifesto Coalition and Abantu for Development, working to promote gender equality.
The Workshop on the theme "Strengthening the Capacity of Women Parliamentary Candidates for Election 2008" was sponsored by Canadian Development Agency (CIDA) and facilitated by the Centre for Sustainable Development Initiatives (CENSUDI) at Pusu-Namongo in the Talensi-Nabdam District of the Upper East Region.
It was to equip women politicians with leadership skills and campaign strategies to help them campaign effectively.
According to the women, the northern woman is already hardworking, therefore when given the necessary training could be empowered to excel in any leadership position.
Participants at the workshop, who comprised 40 female parliamentary candidates and campaign teams from the Upper East and Upper West Regions, were drawn from the New Patriotic Party, National Democratic Congress, People's National Convention (PNC), Convention People's Party (CPP) and the Democratic Freedom Party (DFP.
They were taken through topics including "Lobbying and Advocacy Skills", "Communication and Presentation Skills", "Campaign Strategies", "Women's Manifesto for Ghana", "the Importance of Women in Decision making and Politics" and "Democracy, Citizenship and Election".
Mrs. Paulina Abayage, Upper East Regional Director of the Department of Women presenting a Paper on the topic "the Importance of Women in Decision Making and Politics" stressed the need for women to be given more training.
She explained that no country could develop properly without the fullest participation of women and urged Government and other stakeholders to give equal opportunity to women to enable them to upgrade themselves and contribute to development.
Mrs. Franciska Issaka, Executive Director of CENSUDI lamented that although democracy was about power sharing and not discrimination, majority of men were wielding more power than their female counterparts who form majority of the population.
"Women also have the right to share power and be given equal opportunity and to also exercise their rights to bring about accelerated development", she added.
Mr. Mike Fuoh, Upper East Regional Deputy Director of National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) presenting a Paper on the topic "Democracy, Citizenship and Election" urged the political parties and the electorate to exercise restraint and not to do anything to mar the forthcoming election and the good reputation Ghana's democracy had gained at the international level.
He explained that one of the essential components of democracy was tolerance, compromise and cooperation.
He urged the female parliamentary candidates to be resolute and bold in their campaigns, and not to allow anybody to discourage them.
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