Young women have been challenged to position themselves well in order to champion women?s rights and promote gender equality through education and advocacy.
This would help bridge the inter-generational gap as a result of aging membership among advocates of women?s rights.
The call came up during a youth forum held at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) by Network for Women?s Rights in Ghana (NETRIGHT), a non-governmental agency and supported by STAR-Ghana.
NETRIGHT is a group of civil society organisations and individuals who have interest in working together to bring a gender perspective to national processes, as well as policy content and implementation.
Dr. Akua Britwum, the Convenor of NETRIGHT, in her address noted that young women in Ghana needed to engage themselves in women?s movement so as to sustain the momentum on women?s rights issues at the national, regional and global levels.
She said it was in fulfillment of this desire that NETRIGHT, since its inception in 1999, had created youth platforms to strengthen existing relationships as well as build new partnerships with youth groups and associations to enhance networking, alliance building, and advocacy on women?s rights and gender equality towards effecting policy change.
Dr Britwum, who is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies, UCC, indicated that a strong and vibrant women?s movement that was capable of influencing policy issues at all levels required a membership of both young and old people, irrespective of background, status or religion.
She said to achieve this vision; there was the need for the creation of common platforms for members, especially for the youth, to stimulate their interest in women?s rights and gender equality discourses.
This, she said, will attract them to engage in women?s issues and ultimately take active roles within women?s movements in Ghana and beyond.
Dr Britwum enumerated some challenges that bedeviled the fight for women?s rights to include financial constraints, and was unhappy that the sector attracted less than one percent of the national budget making it dependent on donors and NGO largesse.
Other challenges, she noted, were weak institutional and technical capacity among others, despite the fact that, gender issues enjoyed Africa, ECOWAS and international protocols, including the United Nations.
She was, however, optimistic that despite all these setbacks, women?s movements in the country would not relent in their efforts to increase strategic partnership with the youth through the formation of regional youth platforms on women?s rights and gender equity.
The Convenor of NETRIGHT also urged the media to support and devote space towards the attainment of women?s rights and gender equity issues.
GNA
