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In this year’s elections, a total of 136 women as against 133, contested in the parliamentary elections, and for the first time in the country’s history, a woman, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, contested as the  presidential candidate of a political party
In this year’s elections, a total of 136 women as against 133, contested in the parliamentary elections, and for the first time in the country’s history, a woman, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, contested as the presidential candidate of a political party

‘Time to involve more women in governance’

The Women in Law and Development in Africa (WiLDAF-Ghana), a Pan Africa Women’s Rights network which aims to promote and reinforce strategies that link law to development, has underscored the need to give women the chance to move from voting to being voted for.

A statement issued by WiLDAF-Ghana, and signed by its Programme Manager for Governance stated that “a vote for women is a vote for change and transformational development.”

Systems and traditions

The organisation further argued that a vote for women, who account for over 51 per cent of the nation’s population, would provide an opportunity for Ghana to move away from the established patriarchy systems and traditions that had hampered the nation’s ability to harness the political potentials of its female population.

In this year’s elections, a total of 136 women as against 133, contested in the parliamentary elections, and for the first time in the country’s history, a woman, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, contested as the  presidential candidate of a political party, the National Democratic Party (NDP).

These, according to the statement, were very inspiring, as it had not only given hope to women but also to young girls; that it is possible for a woman to also become the President of Ghana.

The statement noted that, it was on record that there were 8,031,144 registered female voters as against 7,681,355 males, who were expected to have voted in last Wednesday’s election, meaning that over the years women voters had been more than men in Ghana.

Harnessing qualities

It also maintained that women were noted “to be competent, meticulous, less corrupt, and responsible when in public or political office. A vote for them means that the country will be able to harness these qualities.”

It said women would also bring their own insights and perspectives into the political decision-making processes and structures, which would improve decision-making in politics and governance, noting that “countries with more women in Parliament tend to have more equitable laws and social programmes and budgets that benefit all.”

At press time on Wednesday, reports from some collation centres indicated that some female sitting MPs lost their bid to retain their seats in the just-ended parliamentary election but some veterans managed to cling on to their seats, with new faces coming on board to add up to the list of elected female MPs.

A report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) indicates that, women have a unique repertoire of experiences and knowledge which will contribute to opening up political spaces and at the very least correct existing lopsided developmental decisions at the national and local levels.

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