By Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Bolgatanga, March 14, GNA – WaterAid Ghana, a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) focused organisation has called for urgent action to empower women, girls, young people and vulnerable communities to bridge the gender inequality gap.
Among the critical issues, WaterAid Ghana underscored the need for stakeholders including government to address challenges in the WASH sector to relieve the burden on women, girls and the vulnerable.
Additionally, it called for collective efforts to tackle obstacles confronting young people’s access to accurate information on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) to help them make informed decisions regarding their sexual lives.
Ms Fauzia Aliu, Advocacy, Campaigns and Inclusion Manager, WaterAid Ghana, made these remarks on behalf of Ms Ewurabena Yanyi-Akofur, Country Director of WaterAid Ghana in Bolgatanga during the commemoration of this year’s International Women’s Day.
The event, held on the theme, “Accelerate Action: Advancing Gender Equality through Inclusive WASH and SRHR Services”, was organised under the auspices of the five-year Sexual Health and Reproductive Education (SHARE) project.
It is being implemented in the Kassena-Nankana and Builsa North Municipalities, and the Bongo and Kassena-Nankana West Districts by a consortium led by Right to Play and supported by Forum for African Educationalists Ghana, WaterAid Ghana and FHI360 and funded by the Global Affairs Canada.
The project aims to advance gender equality by providing access to age-appropriate sexual and reproductive education and gender responsive care for young people especially girls and young women.
“At WaterAid Ghana, we believe that addressing the challenges in WASH and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) is not just about infrastructure or policy, it’s about empowering communities. We are here to dismantle the barriers that hinder progress and to build a society where every individual can thrive.
“In our region, we are particularly focused on the unique challenges faced by out-of-school girls. These young women are often deprived of opportunities that many of us take for granted—the chance to receive quality education, to access critical health services, and to participate fully in their communities,” Ms Aliu said.
Mr Donatus Atanga Akamugri, the Upper East Regional Minister, acknowledged the contributions of women to national development in many countries including Ghana, adding that
issues of women could not be more significant than a time when the country’s Vice President was a woman.
He said despite the achievements chalked by women over the years, young women and girls continued to face several challenges including the lack of the needed WASH facilities in schools and workplaces to support menstrual hygiene management and access to SRHR information and product.
This, he said, limited the progress of many women and girls in the country and continued to widen the gender inequality gap and advocated collective efforts to address the challenges to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“It is worth noting that gender equality, SRHR are intertwined, and government is committed to promoting both through policies, legislation and programmes”, he said.
Mr Akamugri challenged Ghanaian women to aspire to hold high leadership positions to contribute to the growth and development of the country, adding that such a move coupled with deliberate efforts from the government would give true meaning to the passage of the Affirmative Action Law.
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