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Interior Minister calls for amplified Women’s voices in West African Peace-Building
Speaking at the Conflict Prevention and Sustainable Peace Forum at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre in Accra, the Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohamed-Mubarak, called for amplifying women’s voices in peace-building in West Africa.
Emphasising the crucial role of women in promoting peace and stability in West Africa, the Minister stated, ‘We must amplify women’s voices in peace building, governance and democratic transitions.’
He highlighted Ghana’s significant strides in promoting women’s leadership, including the appointment of the country’s first female Vice President in 2025 and the passage of the Affirmative Action, Gender Equality Act, 2024, which mandates a minimum 40% female representation in public appointments, a move that underscores Ghana’s commitment to inclusive governance.
Mubarak Muntaka stressed that conflict prevention requires a proactive approach, vision, unity and courage.
“We must institutionalise women’s leadership in peace architecture, invest in education and youth empowerment and strengthen regional collaboration,” he urged.
He noted that West Africa faces complex security challenges, including violent extremism, insurgency, terrorism, piracy and climate-induced conflicts and emphasised the need for holistic and inclusive approaches to address these root causes.
To achieve sustainable peace, Hon. Muntaka outlined a comprehensive action plan, saying women’s leadership must be ensured in peace architecture at national, regional and local levels. He added that education and youth empowerment are crucial in tackling grievances and exclusion and that regional collaboration must be strengthened through ECOWAS protocols and joint security operations.
The Minister further added that digital literacy must be promoted to counter disinformation that fuels tensions and that inclusive dialogue must be fostered, particularly in fragile and transitional contexts and early warning systems driven by civil society and women’s groups must be prioritized.
He emphasised the importance of working together to build a region where peace is firm, democracy is credible and every voice is heard and valued. He commended the Australian High Commission in Ghana and the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre for collaborating on the timely and critical programme.
The Australian High Commissioner to Ghana, Her Excellency Berenice Owen-Jones, emphasizes the importance of reforming peace-building architecture, stressing that peace must be built on justice and gender equality, which the Commission actively champions.
The forum reflects the shared commitment of Ghana and international partners to promoting peace, stability and inclusive governance in West Africa.
It provides an opportunity to interrogate not only regional peace and security architecture but also to emphasise the often-overlooked role of women as active agents in conflict prevention and democratic consolidation.
Mr. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie, the Member of Parliament for the Odododiodioo Constituency in the Greater Accra Region, has assured the Accra Street Academy of his support in achieving its mission of uplifting vulnerable children within the community to break the cycle of poverty. “Without the needed support, your efforts may go round in circles due to the enormity of the task. This should not be left on the shoulders of the Academy alone. You need support from both government and the private sector. With that, the Academy would be in a good position to shape the future of these children on the streets,” he said.
The Accra Street Academy, originally formed in 1985 as a boxing arena, now serves as a school for deprived children, with most of its population numbering hundreds of pupils being neglected children from the streets of Jamestown and its environs. Mr. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie made these remarks at the annual stakeholders’ meeting and fundraising event held over the weekend under the theme “Empowering Street Children: Health and Wellness.” The event is one of the Academy’s annual programmes, organized to raise funds and other forms of support to aid the school in catering to the needs of the children and holding its Christmas get-together.
According to the MP, it is worth noting that these children are taught and provided with two meals and a snack daily through the support of benevolent members of society. In view of this, he promised to facilitate the acquisition of documents needed for the construction of an Astroturf within the school’s premises. He noted that “every child has the right to play, and therefore I pledged to do my best to secure the needed documents” for the project to commence.
The legislator disclosed that over the years, the academic programmes of the Accra Street Academy have transformed children surviving on the streets into successful adults. He therefore urged other members of society to partner with the school to “help pupils rise higher for a better Ghana.” In the 2025/26 academic year, 22 pupils were absorbed by the Accra Metro Education Directorate as they transitioned into various Junior High Schools, while still returning to the Accra Street Academy for academic support.
Ms. Yvonne Abba-Opoku, a chartered governance advisor and senior executive in the nonprofit and charity sector, stated that the best gift to give a child was education.
By Spectator Reporter
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Mrs Regina Kudom, Senior Midwifery Officer at the New Atuabo Health Centre in the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality, has urged expectant mothers to attend antenatal clinic regularly for safe delivery.
She revealed that “in Tarkwa and its environs many pregnant women prefer staying at prayer camps, we are not against that, you can be there, but when your time is up for your antenatal session make sure you attend.”
Mrs Kudom gave the advice when the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation (GFGF) observed the World Prematurity Day with pregnant women at New Atuabo, Huniso and Awudua health centres.
World Prematurity Day falls on November 17, every year, and it is celebrated to raise awareness about the challenges faced by pre-term babies and their families.
She said research suggested that sex during pregnancy could soften the cervix and potentially aid in labour preparation.
“That is the reason why we encourage pregnant women to have sex with their partners, if they do not have any health implications,” she added.
Mrs Kudom appealed to the GFGF to upgrade the New Atuabo health centre as the current structure was too small because they received many patients daily.
Madam Ayishetu Mohammed, Project Coordinator for GFGF, explained that they received donations from Project C. U. R. E and the items were given to health facilities in their operational area.
She stated that they noticed there were baby dresses, sanitary pads, and baby apparel, so they decided to distribute them among expectant mothers in three of their host communities.
Madam Mohammed said because the foundation was interested in preventive care, they brought a midwife from the Tarkwa Mine hospital to educate the pregnant women.
She extolled the midwives in New Atuabo health centre for the education they gave to the pregnant women and implored them to heed to the advice given during antenatal visits to reduce maternal deaths in the Tarkwa Nsuaem and Prestea Huni-Valley Municipalities.
Mr Paa Kwasi Egan, Deputy Chief Physician Assistance, emphasised that a pregnant woman being anemic meant she was not eating a balance diet, and added that, “Some of these women do not have money to buy food or visit antenatal clinics.”
He said when men follow their wives for antenatal visits, they would be educated extensively on why they should provide funds for their pregnant wives.
Mr Egan, therefore, encouraged all men to be involved in their pregnant wives’ antenatal care appointments so they could learn more about pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. – GNA
