Gender
Sexual Assault Awareness Month …A call to action
Her mother noticed she was not bubbly as she used to when she returned from school on Friday afternoon.
Dzidzor kept to herself throughout the rest of the day and refused to have lunch or dinner with the family.
Before her mother went to bed, she went to see her daughter in her room only to see her soaked in her own tears and could not get out as she tried to help her out of bed.
Dzidzor’s mother called for help to lift her 13-year old daughter out of bed. And as her oldest son run into the room, Dzidzor passed out.
As they lifted her from the bed, they noticed she was soaked in blood.
Earlier on her way home, Dzidzor was ambushed and defiled by two of her seniors in school who had been making advances at her for the past four months.
Dzidzor’s story mirrors the plight victims of sexual assault go through and the need for parents, teachers, and non-governmental organisations to tackle the issue and its associated challenges heads on.
Globally the month of April is celebrated as the Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM).
This year, the campaign would be marked on the theme ‘Together we act, united we change,’ and highlights the importance of working together to address and prevent sexual abuse, assault, and harassment.
Sexual Assault Awareness Month is an opportunity to listen to and honour survivors in our community and show those impacted by sexual violence that they are not alone.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines sexual violence as any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic or otherwise directed against a person’s sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any.
According to the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), one in seven aged between 15-49 have experience sexual violence at some point in their lives according to the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS).
The report states that six per cent of women aged 15 and 49 experienced sexual violence within 12 months preceding the survey.
This finding is an indication of prevalence of human right abuse in the country which requires stringent measures to address.
It also mentioned that sexual violence can be experienced by every woman aged 15-49 years irrespective of one’s marital status; the proportions however, vary across different categories.
Over 53 per cent of women and over 29 per cent of men reported experiencing sexual violence (Chen, et al., 2023).
Sexual assault or violence impacts everyone and anyone can be a victim of sexual violence. People who commit such atrocities exist in communities.
Sexual violence is an umbrella term that includes any type of unwanted sexual contact including sexual abuse, assault, harassment, unwanted sexual contact or touching, exploitation and trafficking, exposing one’s genitals or naked body to other without consent, nonconsensual image sharing or coercion, words and actions of sexual nature against a person’s will and without their consent.
Sexual assault or violence can stem out of privilege and power, tolerance of abuse, unsatisfied sexual desires, patriarchal norms and corruption.
Everyone in each community, whether at the workplace, school, deserves to live in safe and supportive environments where they are treated with respect.
In tackling assault or violence, education is the first step to action. In education, empowering various communities to be part of the solution is key.
The Ghanaian Times newspaper reported that the Civic Education Officer of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mrs Phebemary Makafui Adodo-Samani, has proposed the adoption of April as Sexual Violence Awareness Month in Ghana.
This according to her would help educate the public, especially children, about the devastating effects of sexual violence and promote a culture of consent.
“As the world observes April as Sexual Violence Awareness Month, I will urge Ghana to also adopt this international event as a national awareness campaign to raise awareness about sexual violence and abuse just like we do in October to raise awareness about Breast Cancer and it working positively,” she said.
Mrs Adodo-Samani made the call at a seminar organised by the Accra Technical University in partnership with “I Believe Global” in Accra last Friday to mark the International Women’s Day.
In March 2018, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Henrietta Fore says it was committed to tackling all forms of sexual misconduct and sexual violence.
According to her, it continuously strives to tackle sexual exploitation and abuse and to improve the safety of the people, especially in settings where the risk of sexual exploitation and abuse rises.
She said UNICEF’s goal was always to be zero victims of sexual exploitation and abuse but said it was harder to address an unreported case than a reported case.
Ms Fore said it takes measures to protect those who report, to assist victims, to address the individual accountability of perpetrators, and to learn from mistakes.
“We have enhanced our investigation process to ensure that reports of sexual misconduct can be promptly investigated, even if the victim does not file a formal complaint,” she said.
By Jemima Esinam Kuatsinu
Across many farming communities in Northern Ghana, women routinely carry their infants on their backs while engaging in strenuous farm labour. This practice, though rooted in necessity and resilience, exposes both mothers and their babies to significant health risks, particularly musculoskeletal strain and developmental concerns.
For these women, the decision to take babies to the farm is rarely optional. It reflects the absence of affordable childcare, entrenched gender roles, and persistent economic pressures that compel women to combine farming, childcare, and household duties simultaneously.
Everyday Reality
In many rural communities in Northern Ghana, women begin their day before sunrise, balancing farm work with domestic responsibilities such as fetching water and firewood, cooking, and caring for children. Carrying infants on their backs, strapped with cloth, enables them to breastfeed and monitor their babies while going about their farming activities.
The use of outdated tools increases the risk of sprains and strains. Exposure to pesticides, extreme heat, and zoonotic infections further endanger women, especially those who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
Effects on Mothers
Dr. Enoch Harvoh, a Senior Medical Doctor at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, explained in an interview with GNA that the primary health risks stem from prolonged physical strain. He identified several key concerns, including musculoskeletal pain, postural changes, chronic fatigue, injury risk, and other hazards such women face.
Dr. Harvoh explained that musculoskeletal issues such as chronic lower back, upper back, neck, and shoulder pain are common among women who farm with babies on their backs. He added that back-carrying alters spinal alignment, increasing pelvic tilt and causing abnormal curvature of the spine, medically described as cervokypholordotic posture.
The combination of farming, domestic work, and childcare leads to severe physical exhaustion and stress, while frequent bending, squatting, and lifting further contribute to physical strain.
Effects on Infants
While back-carrying supports bonding and infant safety, prolonged exposure in farm environments presents risks to infants. These include:
- Lower limb development concerns
- Restricted movement and visual stimulation
- Potentially affected sensorimotor development
- Exposure to farm hazards including chemicals, machinery, and excessive heat
According to Dr. Harvoh, some studies link extended back-carrying to changes in leg alignment, such as genu valgum (knock-knees), though these are often within normal clinical limits.
Labour and Time Constraints
Women face chronic labour shortages, especially during peak farming seasons. Combined with unpaid domestic work and childcare, this creates extreme physical and mental strain.
Madam Saada Abdul, a farmer from Kpadjai in the Kpandai District, told GNA that she regularly carries her baby while weeding, harvesting, transporting crops, and cooking. “The work is very hard, and the baby’s weight adds to the pain in my back and waist. I hardly get time to rest compared to my husband,” she said.
Similarly, Madam Ramatu Iddris from the Nawuri community explained that women often prioritise labour on their husbands’ farms, reducing productivity on their own plots. Limited access to tractors, credit, extension services, and market information forces many women to rely on manual labour while carrying their babies.
These compounded challenges heighten women’s vulnerability to climate shocks such as drought, erratic rainfall, and economic downturns.
Intersecting Challenges
The practice of carrying babies to farms is embedded within broader structural inequalities. Customary inheritance systems largely favour men, leaving women with limited access to land. Many women farm on their husbands’ plots or borrow small, less fertile parcels of land, discouraging long-term investment and access to credit or extension services.
Women account for more than half of Ghana’s agricultural labour force, particularly in subsistence farming in the Northern Sector, yet much of their work remains informal and undervalued, with limited recognition in economic planning and policy frameworks.
Resilience and Coping Strategies
Despite these hardships, Northern women farmers demonstrate remarkable resilience. Common coping mechanisms include forming women’s farming groups to access training, credit, and inputs. Livelihood diversification, such as engaging in shea butter processing, poultry rearing, petty trading, charcoal production, and seasonal migration, can help supplement income.
Recommendations
Stakeholders in agriculture, health, and local governance must prioritise targeted interventions to reduce the physical burden on women farmers. Key recommendations include:
- Establishing community-based childcare centres to reduce the need to carry babies to farms
- Providing practical ergonomic training on safe lifting, posture, and culturally appropriate baby-carrying techniques
- Improving access to appropriate farm tools and small-scale mechanisation
- Strengthening workplace protections through rest breaks, access to potable water, and protective equipment
- Formally recognising women’s unpaid care and agricultural labour in national and district development planning
Health professionals also recommend targeted strengthening and stretching exercises for the lower back and pelvic muscles to mitigate long-term physical strain associated with combined farming and childcare responsibilities.
Conclusion
Women farmers are indispensable to Ghana’s food security and rural livelihoods. Yet their contributions come at a high personal cost due to systemic inequities, limited support services, and entrenched gender roles.
Addressing the health and productivity challenges faced by women who farm with babies on their backs is not only a matter of equity but a critical investment in national development, public health, and future generations.
—GNA
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A training and capacity-building workshop was held on Thursday for the media to intensify coverage on gender-based issues to support women’s participation in leadership and governance in Accra.
The workshop, held under the theme ‘Strengthening Advocacy for the Implementation of Ghana’s Affirmative Action (Equity) Law, 2024 – The Case of the Media’, brought together journalists from selected media houses.
The Convener of the Affirmative Action (AA) Law Coalition, Ms Sheila Minka-Premo (Esq.), stressed that the media has a critical responsibility to educate the public on the importance of the Affirmative Action Act, noting that sustained and informed reporting would strengthen advocacy and support the effective implementation of the law.
While commending both the Legislature and the Executive for the passage and presidential assent of the Affirmative Action Bill into law, the AA Law Coalition Convener appealed to government to address existing gaps. These include the constitutional provision of 30 per cent women’s representation in politics, inadequate policy frameworks to advance affirmative action, and weak compliance by state institutions.
She charged the media to highlight and promote the role of women in leadership and to actively support a smooth and effective implementation process of the Act.
In her welcome address, Executive Director of ABANTU for Development, Dr Rose Mensah-Kutin, said the training sought to strengthen journalists’ advocacy skills to enable them to educate the public on the provisions and significance of the law.
Dr Mensah-Kutin commended ActionAid Ghana for supporting the advocacy efforts, urging the media to prioritise the law to ensure its sustainability.
The Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 (Act 1121) was passed by Parliament in July 2024 and received presidential assent in September 2024, following years of sustained advocacy by women’s rights organisations, gender activists, and other stakeholders.
By Linda Abrefi Wadie
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