By Priscilla Oye Ofori
Accra, July 17, GNA – The Ministry of Gender has directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to comply with the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024, by developing gender policies and submitting implementation reports.
It said compliance with the law was mandatory and essential to advancing gender equity across the public sector.
Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, gave the directive at a capacity-building workshop for Chief Directors and Gender Desk Officers in Accra.
The workshop was organised to provide practical guidance on the provisions, reporting requirements and implementation mechanisms of the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 (Act 1121).
Dr Lartey said Section 30 of the Act mandated the Ministry, through the Department of Gender, to coordinate its implementation.
She said the Act required public institutions to integrate gender equity into recruitment, appointments, promotions and decision-making processes, while promoting equitable representation of women in leadership positions.
The Minister said a directive from the Office of the President required all public institutions to take immediate steps to comply with the legislation.
She said gender equity was no longer a policy aspiration but a national development imperative supported by law, adding that the success of the Act depended on effective implementation by all MDAs.
Dr Lartey said the Ministry had established a Gender Equity Committee and Secretariat to coordinate implementation and had begun stakeholder engagements with institutions, including the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service.
She said the Secretariat had developed a standardised reporting template for use by all MDAs.
Dr Lartey emphasised that submission of implementation reports was mandatory because they would inform monitoring, policy decisions and certification.
“Failure to submit the required reports constitutes non-compliance and undermines national efforts towards achieving gender equity,” she stated.
The Minister urged Chief Directors to provide leadership and Gender Desk Officers to champion gender mainstreaming within their institutions.
Mr Gideon Mankralo, National Project Coordinator of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), called for the integration of gender equality into climate policies through the implementation of the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act.
He said women in informal employment and agriculture were particularly vulnerable to climate shocks and stressed the need for gender-responsive climate action, green skills development, access to finance and leadership opportunities to support a just transition.
Mr Mankralo said climate change had the potential to widen existing gender inequalities unless deliberate corrective measures were implemented.
“This is precisely where affirmative action becomes indispensable,”he said.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
Reporter: Priscilla Oye Ofori
Email: [email protected]