Accra, Oct 24, GNA – The African Women Leaders Network (AWLN) Ghana National Chapter has called for more targetted support for women and children affected by floods in parts of the Volta, Eastern and Greater Accra Regions.
It said women and children were often more vulnerable to the impacts of floods due to their physical and social characteristics, hence, there was the need for a multi-faceted approach to address their unique needs and vulnerabilities.
A statement issued and signed by Dr Charity Binka, Chairperson, AWLN Ghana National Chapter, said women were particularly at a disadvantage due to societal norms or physical limitations while children lacked the capacity to respond effectively to flood-related dangers.
It said AWLN Ghana was saddened by the plight of pregnant women and new mothers who were facing additional challenges in accessing healthcare and ensuring the safety of their infacts during floods.
The Network called for the collection of gender disaggregated data to better understand the specific needs of women and children during flooding for quick interventions.
It said the analysis of such data would determine the practical measures that could be taken to meet the real needs of the affected people, especially women and children.
The Network called for the establishment of safe and gender-sensitive evacuation shelters with secure sleeping and sanitation facilities to cater to the needs of women and children.
It also proposed the provision of nutritional support to pregnant and lactating women and children to prevent mal- nutrition, and daily distribution of ready-to-eat food and clean water in affected areas.
The rest are provision of access to maternal and child healthcare services at the shelters, especially for pregnant women, new mothers, and infants and provision of mobile medical units for hard-to-reach areas to provide immediate medical assistance.
The statement said the provision of psychosocial support services to help women and children cope with the emotional trauma of flooding and training of community members to support health officials to provide mental health services were necessary.
The Network noted that in those times, women and girls were likely to suffer abuse and sexual harassment, hence, it appealed to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection to introduce measures to prevent and respond to Gender-Based Violence, including safe reporting mechanisms.
It also urged the Ministry of Education to immediately establish temporary learning centres and provide educational materials for children to continue their education during the displacement. AWLN Ghana commended the efforts of the Government, organisations, development partners and individuals in addressing the disaster, however, it said such efforts must be well coordinated and led by the relevant Ministries to avoid wastage and abuse.
AWLN pledged its commitment to efforts to support the affected communities and assist in ameliorating their situation.
The devastating floods, caused by excess spillage of water from Akosombo and Kpong dams, have displaced over 30,000 people.The African Women Leaders Network (AWLN) Ghana Chapter is a ground-breaking movement of African women leaders established in 2017.
The Ghana Chapter, launched on 9th November, 2017, joined the network as the 31st Chapter.
It is a joint initiative of the African Union and the United Nations’ goal of creating a continent-wide women’s movement led by and for women.
Currently, there are 33 chapters ofAWLN across Africa.
GNA