VZCZCXRO6674
PP RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHAR #2443/01 3311259
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 271259Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY ACCRA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5743
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ACCRA 002443 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KWMN SOCI ECON GH
SUBJECT: GHANAIAN WOMEN - 50 YEARS OF PROGRESS BUT A LONG WAY TO GO 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Representing more than half the population, 
Ghanaian women have contributed substantially to Ghana's development 
since independence.  Aside from their critical role in Ghana's 
economy, women participate in the public sphere, taking on leading 
positions in politics and civil society.  However, various obstacles 
impede women's full contribution to Ghana's development: exclusion 
from national processes, under-representation in public life and 
decision-making, and limited access to economic assets.  To fully 
achieve the substantial returns in investing in women will require 
Ghana to develop and implement a sustained approach to eliminating 
gender inequalities. END SUMMARY. 
 
A HISTORICAL LOOK AT WOMEN IN POLITICS 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Ghana's ethnic, socio-economic, religious, and regional 
diversity means that women's position and status vary significantly 
depending on their community.  However, on the whole, the number of 
women in high-level political positions has historically been low. 
In 1966, ten women were appointed to Parliament by President Kwame 
Nkrumah, although a coup d'etat prevented them from serving their 
terms.  From 1972 to 1974, two of he 140 members of Parliament were 
women and in 1979-1981 a total of five women were elected to 
Parliament.  Furthermore, only one woman has ever run for vice 
president in 1996 and there have been no female presidential 
candidates.  Women have not held top positions in the nation's main 
political parties and traditionally have been poorly represented in 
male-dominated professions such as science and law. 
 
WOMEN IN GOVERNMENT TODAY 
------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Recently, Ghanaian women have made strides in the public 
sector.  In addition to holding several high-level positions as 
ministers and deputy ministers, women serve as district assembly 
members and judges.  The first female director of Ghana Immigration 
Services, Elizabeth Adjei, was appointed in 2002.  In 2007, Georgina 
Wood was appointed the first female Chief Justice, assuming the 
fourth highest position in Ghana's state hierarchy.  Other women in 
leading positions include the Acting Commissioner of CHRAJ, Anna 
Bossman, and the Deputy Inspector-General of the Police, Elizabeth 
Mills-Robertson. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Despite some progress in the public sector, activists feel 
that the presence of women remains limited and, according to Angela 
Dwamena-Aboagye, still has an air of "tokenism".  While 
representation of women in Parliament has increased from 0% at 
independence in 1957 to 11% in 2007, the current number of women in 
Parliament is only 25 of 230 seats.  Activists argue that this 
number remains unacceptably low and note that only few women hold 
top political positions in Ghana. 
 
¶5. (U) In Ghana's current government, there are only three women out 
of 24 members of the Council of State, the body which advises the 
President, ministers and Parliament on the performance of their 
duties.  Only seven out of 28 ministers are women, and there are 
only three female members of the cabinet and 12 deputy ministers. 
Furthermore, only about 10% of the district chief executives, the 
highest-level official with administrative and executive 
responsibilities at the district level, are women.  Ghanaian women's 
rights activists contend that the patriarchal nature of Ghanaian 
politics, lack of financial resources, and stereotypes of women as 
weak leaders, make it challenging for a female candidate to launch a 
successful campaign. 
 
WOMEN'S CONTRIBUTIONS IN ECONOMY AND CIVIL SOCIETY 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Notwithstanding Ghanaian women's limited presence in 
politics, they continue to be critical players in Ghana's informal 
economy.  Women are indispensable to the three sectors that account 
for most of Ghana's gross domestic product (GDP): agriculture, 
industry, and services.  In addition to being key actors in Ghana's 
food production, women have traditionally dominated the nursing, 
teaching and secretarial fields.  In recent times, they have entered 
into professions historically dominated by men, including law, 
medicine, and engineering. [NOTE: Women's role in Ghana's economic 
development will be reported septel. END NOTE] 
 
¶7. (SBU) Ghanaian women have also become influential civil society 
leaders, heading many non-governmental organizations and serving as 
advocates for women's and children's rights and welfare.  The 
Regional Coordinator of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, 
Nana Oye Lithur, demonstrated leadership in pushing for a 
controversial marital rape clause in Ghana's domestic violence 
legislation, which specifically makes marital rape illegal.  Ms. 
Lithur also helped to establish the Police Service's Domestic 
Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) in 1998. 
 
EFFORTS TO ADDRESS WOMEN'S NEEDS 
-------------------------------- 
 
ACCRA 00002443  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) In addition, Ghana has witnessed several recent 
institutional and legal developments that are focused on women's 
concerns and needs.  In 2006, the Ministry of Women and Children's 
Affairs, itself headed by a female Cabinet Minister, launched a 
400,000 Ghana Cedi (USD 425,000) fund to support campaigning and 
other activities of women in local governance.  After many years of 
pressuring lawmakers, gender activists succeeded in having the 
Domestic Violence Act passed in 2007, a key instrument which 
supplements existing legal protections enjoyed by women.  In 
addition, gender desk officers have been established in most 
ministries, government departments and agencies as well as in the 
138 district assemblies. 
 
FURTHER PROGRESS NEEDED 
----------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Overall, female activists believe progress has been slow 
and limited, and contend that gender equality is not broadly 
accepted as a development priority in the country.  By working 
primarily in the informal sector (particularly the lower echelons), 
women are victims of highly unstable remuneration, low returns and 
lack of social security benefits.  As a result, many Ghanaian women 
continue to live in poverty and other vulnerable conditions. 
Furthermore, many potentially successful female entrepreneurs 
continue to be constrained by cultural, economic and educational 
barriers. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Moreover, the progress made in developing institutions and 
laws that protect women's and children's rights has been hampered by 
a lack of resources and ineffective implementation.  The Ministry of 
Women and Children's Affairs, like other entities focused on women's 
issues, suffers from insufficient financial and human resources. 
While the government adopted an Affirmative Action Policy in 1998 
mandating a 40% quota for women's representation in all government 
bodies, this has not yet been achieved. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Finally, stereotypes and tradition at home relegate many 
women to customary roles with limited decision making power and 
resources.  According to Jane Quaye, women's social obligations as 
caretakers significantly restrict their time and freedom outside of 
home.  Harmful traditional practices such as early forced marriages, 
female genital mutilation, and gender based violence also perpetuate 
women's subordinate status. In short, women's rights activists agree 
that Ghana has "a long way to go." 
 
A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR GHANA 
--------------------------- 
 
¶12. (SBU) COMMENT: Despite the progress Ghanaian women have made in 
many areas, continuing gender inequalities have a negative impact on 
Ghana's development.  In the words of Nana Oye Lithur, the role of 
women in Ghana's development "is improving but has been very, very 
slow and needs to be jumpstarted."  To overcome the challenges will 
require policies that proactively empower women to participate in 
the economy and politics.  This will also require socio-cultural 
changes to give women equal decision-making power within traditional 
communities, the public sphere, and at home. END COMMENT 
 
BRIDGEWATER