CENSODEV LAUNCHES PROJECT TO PUSH WOMEN TO POLITICAL FOREFRONT 14th May, 2024

 The regional launch of a women’s voter mobilization project under the Political Accountability Activity funded by the United States Agency for International Development [USAID], has taken place in Navrongo in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality of the Upper East Region. Regional stakeholders and volunteers were also given orientation on the project, which will see several activities happen in all the 15 districts of the Upper East Region.

Group Photo of Stakeholders

The Centre for Social Mobilisation & Sustainable Development [CENSODEV], a Navrongo-based not-for-profit organization, is the implementer of the project and its authorities had to work through the International Republican Institute [IRI] to source the required funding from the USAID for the execution of the project.

Giving an overview of the project at the launch, Executive Director of CENSODEV, Mr. Braimah Sanjage revealed that the project is intended to whip up interest of citizens especially, women, tribal minorities, Persons living With Disabilities and the Youth in Ghana’s upcoming 2024 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections so as to ultimately, increase voter turnout in target Constituencies/Districts. 

On the scope and coverage of the project, Mr. Sanjage said it will basically mobilise marginalised minorities in the society to enable them participate effectively in the country’s 2024 general elections processes and disclosed that, it will cover some five [5] regions including the Upper West, Upper East, North East, Bono East and Western regions. He added that coordinators have always been identified and recruited in these areas to help do the necessary ground work for an effective implementation and a successful outcome for the project. Meanwhile, a team from the CENSODEV base in Navrongo will periodically move in to partake in planned engagement activities with target stakeholders in the earmarked zones and regions and as well, monitor the progress of implementation.

Braimah Sanjage, CENSODEV Dir.

The Executive Director also used the occasion to reassure the funding partners and stakeholders that, his organisation is a registered community-focused social development organization that has been dedicated to creating and strengthening grassroots networks, alliances and self-help associations for building community resilience. "We are currently working with over 500 women groups with membership size ranging between 25 and 75 members in Upper East, North East and Upper West Regions and therefore, mobilizing these women and other stakeholders for projects like this is not new to us", he emphasized.

Mr. Sanjage added that, the thematic areas of CENSODEV were Participatory Local Governance, Social and Duty-Bearer Accountability (PLGSDA), Climate Change Actions, Community Livelihood Empowerment for women; including capacity training and employment as well as Water, Sanitation, Hygiene, Health and Safety Management.

According to the CENSODEV Boss, some essential activities to be rolled under the project will include media mobilization campaigns, townhall citizens’ outreach, market outreach campaigns, door-to-door & GOTV Campaigns and dissemination of information, education and communication (IEC) materials and others forms of publicity deemed fit for the purpose. He stated for instance that, his outfit on Saturday 11^th May, 2024, brought together a number of women’s groups from both the Kassena-Nankana Municipality and Kassena-Nankana West District for a sensitisation float that saw the women match through the principal streets of Navrongo waving numerous placards with inscriptions calling on women to step up their game in the politics of Ghana whilst others urged stakeholders to do everything possible to increase women’s participation in politics and other spheres of  public affairs.

The Kassena-Nankana Municipal Chief Executive, Hon. Joseph Adongo in his statement to formally launch the project commended CENSODEV and partners for the project and said he will always support efforts geared towards the full inclusion/participation of women in politics but advised that all efforts must be handled tactfully so as not to seem as an attack or onslaught on their male counterparts else some others may act in ways that will stifle all the good intentions.

Hon. Adongo urged women to disabuse their minds of seeing themselves as being "the weaker sex" and that, the time had long gone when women would be handed positions simply because they were women.  He is of the view that, the Ghanaian woman can also contest with men for political and other positions as their colleagues in other jurisdictions were able to same and even sometimes, outperform men.

Paramount Chief of the Navrongo Traditional area Pe Asagepare II who chaired the launch noted in his closing remarks that, African women face an army of challenges such as traditional gender roles, gender-based stereotypes, gender-based political culture and household inequalities among other negative attitudes against the female gender. He said all these, coupled with the sheer fear of majority of women to put themselves forward for political and other leadership roles, continue to diminish the presence of women on the country’s political landscape and other areas of decision making.

Navro Pio, Pe Asagepare II

 

Notwithstanding the aforementioned bottlenecks working against women, the Navro Pio however stated, "but these obstacles should not scare us from looking forward; that is why we should encourage networks like CENSODEV and its partners who are poised to help us get through with it". Meanwhile, he entreated women to show dedication and unrepentant commitment to their involvement in the country’s politics stressing that, help will always come their way from well-meaning Ghanaians and organisations that stand to champion women’s affairs.

Representatives from other stakeholder-institutions including the Electoral Commission, the National Peace Council, the National Commission for Civic Education and some Queen Mothers also addressed participants at the CENSODEV regional launch of the women’s voter mobilization project.