Women in Ghanaian Politics: A Case Study of the Fourth Republic
Abstract:
As it is in most developing countries in Africa and other parts of the world, women in Ghana are yet to find their bearing in the decision making process of the nation. Research has it that the current Republic of Ghana which is the Fourth is historical because there are more women in higher public offices than ever, yet this though a remarkable improvement to what was obtainable before, is insufficient because out of the over 51 per cent representation of women in Ghana’s population, their political representation is miserly 8 per cent. This is in spite of years of continuous public education by a host of Non- Governmental Organizations and women groups, measures such as Affirmative Action and nomination of women into public offices taken in recent times have only made minimal impact in redressing the trend. With the transfer of power from military regime to a civilian democratic government coupled with the Beijing Declaration of 1995, more women political representation would have been expected. The only area women have met the 30 per cent Affirmative Action benchmark is at the District Assembly level where their participation has improved from five to 35.5 per cent. This study, therefore, identifies the challenges women encounter in a bid to get into politics. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used in this study. Recommendations were made to ensure increased gender-balanced representation in politics and ensuring that Ghana becomes an equitable society, which means one level playing field for all.ORDER COMPLETE MATERIAL (CHAPTER 1-5)
