By Regina Benneh
Abesim, (Bono), Dec. 16, GNA – ActionAid Ghana (AAG), a Non-governmental organisation has expressed concern about the growing trend of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG), especially in private and public institutions.
Describing the situation as disturbing, Kwame Afram Denkyira, Bono Regional Manager of the AAG called for concerted efforts to stem the bad and unacceptable practices which remained inimical to the growth and development of women.
“VAWG remains prevalent,” he stated, regretting about the recurring murder of women and girls in the country.
Mr Denyira raised the concerns when speaking at women’s dialogue held at Abesim, near Sunyani and jointly organised by the Citizens Watch, Indigenous Women Network and Global Media Foundation (GLOMEF), NGOs and funded by AAG.
The day’s dialogue was on the theme “ending gender-based violence: community taking action” and attended representatives from various organizations, including the Prison Wives Association, Police Wives Association, the media, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU).
Mr Denyira underlined the need to increase funding for women’s rights movements for vigorous advocacy and campaigns for women and girls to become assertive enough and empowered women economically.
He said perpetrators of violence against women ought to receive harsher punishment too to serve as a deterrent to like-minded others and to help bring the situation under control.
Mr Denkyira said research showed that about 736 million women, one in three, experienced physical and sexual abuses from their intimate partners.
“One in every eight women and girls between 15-49 years has experienced violence from their intimate partners”, he stated, adding the “intentional killings of women in 2022 are approximately 89,000, the highest recorded in 20 years”.
Mr Denkyira said integrated approaches, intensified public education, harsher legislation and available support systems to empower survivors to rebuild their lives were required to stem VAWG in the country.
There is also the need to re-evaluate social norms and dismantle structures that perpetuate gender inequalities, he stated, saying support systems remained crucial for the recovery of survivors of violence, emphasising the importance of financing essential services including public shelter, counselling, and rehabilitation programmes.
He said legislation and enforcement played a critical role in protecting women and girls from violence and stressed the need to tackle legal gaps that allowed perpetrators to “escape justice” and ensured that survivors access a fair justice delivery.
“The government cooperation and individuals must step up and allocate resources for funding programmes to address the root causes of gender-based violence,” Mr Denkyira added, saying that could put the nation on the edge in achieving gender equality of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) by 2030.
Mr Raphael Godlove Ahenu, the Chief Executive Officer of the GloMeF said the dialogue was in line with the celebration of the 16 Days of activism against gender-based violence, a campaign that sought to advocate the prevention and elimination of violence the VAWG in the country.
GNA