News
‘Prioritise needs of women in agric sector’
Women farmers and agribusiness owners have called on the government and stakeholders in agriculture to prioritise the unique needs of women in the sectorin order to enhance the country’s food security and foster economic growth.
According to them, women who play significant roles in ensuring the nation’s food security faced numerous challenges that hindered their ability to increase their production.
Madam HabibataHaruna, a farmer, made the call on behalf of her colleagues on Friday at a policy dialogue at Wa in the Upper West Region on the theme, “Shaping Ghana’s Agricultural Future: The Role of Rural Women”.
It was part of activities to herald the commemoration of this year’s International Day of Rural Women.
It was organised by the Feed the Future Ghana Policy LINK Activity in collaboration with four other partners; the Ghana Market Systems and Resilience (MSR) Activity, Ghana Mobilising Finance in Agriculture (MFA) Activity, Resilience in Northern Ghana and Strengthening Systems Activity, Ghana Trade and Investment Initiative (GTI) supported by the Women in Agriculture Development of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).
The dialogue brought together over 80 participants, with the majority being women groups and associations in agriculture from the five USAID’s Zone of Influence (ZOI) districts, namely Daffiama-BussieIssah, Wa East, Sissala West, Sissala East and Nadowli-Kaleo.
Madam Habibata, summarising the discussions by the women, said they hoped for inclusion and active participation in the sector’s policy and governance processes.
Addressing the participants, MrYunusAbdulai, the Country Lead of Feed the Future Ghana Policy LINK, emphasised that the United States Government, through its Feed the Future initiative, had been dedicated to addressing issues affecting women, particularly rural women in agriculture.
He said the active involvement of women in agriculture was pivotal to enhancing productivity at all levels, and said women needed support to enable them work diligently.
Present at the dialogue session were officials of the Regional Department of Agriculture led by Mr Emmanuel SasuYeboah, the Regional Director and representatives of civil society organisations in the region.
From Rafia Abdul Razak, Wa
A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dr. Sammy Ayeh has picked up nomination forms to contest for the position of Deputy National Communications Officer position.
Announcing his intention, Dr. Ayeh said he is offering himself to help communicate the party’s vision clearly and connect its message with the aspirations of Ghanaians.
He expressed deep gratitude to the party’s National Communications Officer, Lawyer Sammy Gyamfi, describing him as an able leader on whose shoulders he has risen.
“His exceptional leadership, mentorship and confidence in me have shaped my journey and strengthened my resolve to serve,” Dr. Ayeh stated.
He said if elected, he will seek to build on that foundation by strengthening research-driven communication, empowering grassroots communicators, and enhancing strategic media engagement.
Dr. Ayeh humbly appealed to party members and supporters for their support.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The Data Protection Commission has called on the Minority Caucus in Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, JoyNews and other media houses to protect the personal information of 1,964 Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa.
In a press release issued on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the Commission expressed concern over the public disclosure of the evacuees’ personal details, including their names, signatures and records of financial assistance received.
It warned that making such information public could expose the affected individuals to identity theft, fraud and other forms of harm, especially given the threats to their safety that some of them may have faced.
The Commission explained that the 1992 Constitution protects the dignity and privacy of every individual. It also cited the Data Protection Act, 2012 (Act 843), which sets out rules for the lawful collection, use and disclosure of personal information.
While acknowledging the importance of transparency, parliamentary oversight, the right to information and press freedom, the Commission stressed that these principles do not automatically justify the unrestricted publication of personal details.
It said the disclosure of the records by the Minority Caucus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, JoyNews and other media organisations must be assessed based on the law, the purpose of the disclosure and the privacy rights of the individuals involved.
The Commission further noted that although the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Parliament are registered data controllers in good standing, their registration does not exempt them from their legal responsibilities under the Data Protection Act.
It has therefore urged all the parties involved to take appropriate steps to protect the affected individuals, including immediately restricting access to or removing personal details from publicly available records where their continued disclosure is not legally justified.
The Commission announced plans to conduct a regulatory review to determine whether the disclosures had a lawful basis, what safeguards were applied and whether the privacy rights of the evacuees had been adequately protected.
It said it would engage the relevant parties as part of the review and take appropriate regulatory action if any breach of the law is established.
The Commission reiterated that protecting personal information and respecting human dignity must remain central to efforts to promote public accountability.
By: Jacob Aggrey
