Gender
Merck Foundation supports livelihood of women and casual workers
Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA, Germany, a leading science and technology company, has partnered 18 African First Ladies to support livelihood of about thousands of women and families of casual and daily workers who are most affected by the COVID -19 lockdown.
The First Ladies include that of Liberia, Ghana, DR Congo, Zimbabwe, Niger, Sierra Leone, Malawi and Burkina Faso.
The relief contribution, according to the organisation, was also undertaken in Egypt with the aim of supporting 500 families.
Dr Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation explained that the lockdown imposed on most countries had hit daily workers and women the most, hence the decision to support them.
The support, she noted, formed part of the Foundation’s “Separated but Connected” initiative.
According to her, the pandemic had led to a “horrifying increase in violence against women,” due to their “confinement at home with an abusive partner which has resulted in not only physical violence but also emotional violence against women.”
That, she said, could have “disastrous consequences” on the health and well-being of women.
“We decided to focus on supporting women in our coronavirus community intervention and strongly continue empowering infertile and childless women as part of our signature campaign ‘Merck More than a Mother’. We know they now need our support more than ever.
“We strongly believe that building professional healthcare capacity is the right strategy to improve access to quality and equitable healthcare especially during this vicious pandemic,” Dr Kelej said.
Merck Foundation said it would continue their current capacity advancement programmes and focus on building coronavirus healthcare capacity by providing one year online postgraduate degrees in Respiratory and Acute Medicines at one of the UK Universities.
This programme is in partnership with African First Ladies, Ministers of Health and Academia across Africa and Asia continents.
Merck Foundation has also launched ‘Stay at Home’ Media Recognition Awards in partnership with the African First Ladies.
The theme of the awards, according to the organisation, is to raise awareness on how to “Stay Safe and Keep Physically and Mentally Healthy during the coronavirus Lockdown with the aim to separate facts from myths and misconceptions.”
“We strongly believe that media plays a critical role in raising awareness about sensitive and pressing issues such as coronavirus. I am looking forward to receive the creative and informative work of our winners so that they become Merck Foundation health champions in their countries,” Dr Rasha Kelej emphasised.
The Foundation has launched an inspiring storybook titled ‘Making the Right Choice’ to raise awareness about coronavirus prevention amongst children and youth.
It provides facts about the pandemic and how to stay safe and healthy during the outbreak, and seek to promote honesty, hard-work and the ability to make the right choices even during the most challenging times.
Source: Ghanaian Times
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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STEMINIST Foundation, Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) with support from Keta Ramsar Centre has trained about 25 women selected from the Keta Municipality on the rights of women and how to use them for their voices to be heard in their communities.
STEMinist Foundation, Ghana, is a network of women advocating equal opportunities through excellent representation of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
The women, mostly fishmongers and other self-styled workers, were taken through topics such as Understanding Energy and Climate Justice, Fossil Gas Expansion, Livelihoods’ Care Work and Health, Women Leadership, and Power Building among others.
Mrs Nerissa Edem Anku, Gender Justice Transition Advisor of the Foundation, noted that the theme “Energy Justice: Empowering Women with Power, Rights and Dignity,” was chosen for the women to reconnect, reflect, and look ahead in shaping their rights as women.
She stated that women have been relegated to the background in the communities when it comes to decision making, stressing the need to correct that for them to know they have rights to fight for themselves.
Mrs Nerissa Edem Anku further noted that women in fishing communities wanted to see real and tangible improvements in their living conditions, spearheaded by government to prevent unhealthy confrontations with the local people.
She assured that the NGO would continue to strengthen its programmes to ensure that women were empowered to contribute meaningfully to the socio-economic development of their families, communities, and the nation.
Miss Portia Adu-Mensah, Facilitator, Community Mobilisation Communicator, on her part added that all stakeholders have to adopt more innovative steps to build an environment in which women can thrive. That, she said, would win the confidence of the women and promote more inclusive partnerships.
The Assemblywoman for Dzelukope, Ruby Adukpoh, on behalf of the women thanked the NGO for the gesture and reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening their collective voices and influence in shaping policies that will affect them.
From Kafui Gati, Keta
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