By Elizabeth Larkwor Baah
Tema, Apr. 14, GNA – Mrs Laudia Sawer, an editor at the Ghana News Agency (GNA), has been named a winner of the 2024 Merck Foundation Media Recognition Award.
Mrs. Sawer won the first position for the “More Than a Mother” 2024 West Africa, Online category.
This was announced in a virtual award ceremony held by the Foundation’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Rasha Kelej, during which other winners in various categories from Ghana and other African countries were also unveiled.
The Merck Foundation Africa Media Recognition Awards, launched in partnership with African First Ladies, are aimed at empowering media practitioners to raise awareness around issues such as infertility, child marriage, gender-based violence, and healthcare disparities.
Mrs. Sawer won the first position with her well-researched educative feature on infertility titled “Infertility Shaming: Addressing the stigma of childlessness in Ghanaian society,” which throws light on the many forms of stigmatisation of childless couples, which span from ethnic cultures to religious activities.
It also touched on some of the causes of infertility, infertility in men, solutions, psychological effects of stigmatisation, and other alternatives available to such couples.
She told the GNA in an interview that the Merck Foundation’s “More Than a Mother” campaign provided the right platform for the media to create awareness of the need to break the silence surrounding infertility across Africa and empower women who are often shamed, abandoned, or marginalised due to their inability to bear children.
She said, “We hear of stories in which in-laws make the lives of a couple, especially the woman, a living hell when, after some years of marriage, there is no offspring.”
She added that in many faith-based communities, particularly within churches that are perceived as sanctuaries of support and compassion, couples experiencing infertility were sometimes summoned publicly during services under the guise of special prayers, explaining that although this practice was often considered harmless, it exposes their private struggles to the wider congregation, potentially subjecting them to stigma or emotional distress.
“The Bible even makes it feel that if you are not getting children, then you are not worthy to receive God’s gift (a child). This can make the couple question whether God is punishing them for some past wrongdoings.”
Mrs. Sawer explained that traditional and cultural norms continue to place the burden of infertility disproportionately on women, as reflected in proverbs and societal narratives that often assign blame without considering that male infertility could be the underlying cause, adding that even joyful occasions such as naming ceremonies, which were deeply rooted in cultural celebration, could become sources of psychological distress for childless couples.
She also underscored the need for couples to seek early medical intervention when facing infertility challenges, highlighting the importance of strengthening healthcare facilities to inculcate fertility services to prevent delayed detection and intervention.
She further revealed that her feature on empowering young women, headlined “Demolishing Stereotypes: Empowering Girls to Build Up Their Future,” also pushed her to win the first position.
Mrs. Sawer, stated that “Winning the award will serve as a motivation to continue with health advocacy stories, as there are many health issues such as diabetes, hypertension, HIV, nutrition, and many others that need attention and constant awareness creation to bring the needed change in lifestyle, policy, and health care delivery.”
She thanked her editors for their contributions to the write-ups, adding that the award-winning stories also align with the GNA’s advocacy programme on health communication, MSME promotion, gender, and climate change issues.
She encouraged journalists to create awareness of such issues, noting that even though they would face some obstacles in obtaining the needed information, they should not give up but rather focus on the impact they want to make in society.
GNA
LS/KOA