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Prioritise rest, build networks to balance work and family life’
Participants after the programme. Photo. Ebo Gorman
Women have been advised to strike a positive balance between work and family life in order to avoid the stress which comes with handling multiple tasks at a time.
They have been encouraged to prioritise rest, build networks, and delegate some of their duties where necessary to save time and energy.
According to Professor Abigail Mensah, majority of women were facing a lot of conflicts in trying to balance their work and family life, but could not voice it out due to the fear of losing their jobs.
She therefore urged organisations to make room for workers, especially, women to prioritise work-life balance by putting in place a work-family reconciliation system.
These were some of the fallouts of discussions held at a forum organised by the Business Administration Department in collaboration with the Women’s Association of the University of Professional Studies, Accra, UPSA recently.
The panel comprised Dr Peace Tetteh, Senior Lecturer, University of Ghana, and Professor Abigail Opoku Mensah, Director of the Centre for International Education and Collaboration (CIEC), UPSA.
Others were Dr Mercy Desouza, Industrial Psychologist, UPSA, and Mrs Shamima Muslim, Convenor, Alliance for Women in Media Africa (AWMA).
The forum which formed part of activities to commemorate this year’s Mother’s Day celebration was themed: ‘Working-Life Balance: A Mirage or a Possibility?’
Dr Peace Tetteh, sharing her thoughts, said prioritising rest, building networks and seeking help should be considered part of self-care.
She said women should, therefore, identify their source of strength which could be from exercise, meditation, reading the scriptures or listening to music to be able to balance work and family life effectively.
On her part, Dr Desouza noted that when work-life imbalances occur, it often leads to ‘’negative stress’’ which is characterised by palpitation and anxiety.’’
For this reason, she advised women to recognise issues that lead to work-life imbalance early and find possible means to address them.
According to her, the church needed to provide not only spiritual support, but social, financial, and informational support.
Mrs Shamima Muslim, in her submission, said a constant work-life balance was not certain because there would always be circumstances beyond ones’ control.
She urged men to complement the role of women at home although certain roles are considered the preserve of women.
By Portia Hutton-Mills
Massive celebrations were recorded countrywide as the Black Stars opened their 2026 World Cup campaign with a 1-0 victory over Panama in Toronto on Wednesday.
Midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi scored the only goal of the match late in the game as he shot in a decent cross from substitute Brandon Asante.
The win gave Ghana a positive start in the competition, placing them in second position behind England, also with three points but with a superior goal aggregate.
After the final whistle, the streets and other viewing centres were turned into partying grounds as fans, mostly clad in the team’s paraphernalia, danced to several World Cup-themed music.
Others blew the vuvuzelas in joyous mood with others putting up a spirited ‘jama’ session.
Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for the Adentan Constituency, Akosua Manu, has urged party members to move away from what she describes as an “entitlement mentality” and focus on unity, sacrifice and hard work as the party prepares for the 2028 general election.
In a statement titled “Is Loyalty a Queue?”, and posted on facebook, Ms. Manu argued that loyalty to the NPP should not be judged by how long a person has been in the party but by their contributions and commitment to its growth.
According to her, the NPP’s history shows that many of its leaders faced significant opposition from within the party before eventually leading it to electoral success.
She cited former President John Agyekum Kufuor as an example, saying he had to overcome resistance from influential figures within the party before winning power for the NPP in 2000.
Ms. Manu noted that after the party lost power in 2008, former President Kufuor faced criticism and accusations from some party members.
However, she said supporters eventually put their differences aside and worked together to rebuild the party.
She pointed to the experience of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who, according to her, faced opposition from some factions within the NPP despite his long service to the party.
“His trials were ten times what Kufuor endured,” she stated, adding that Akufo-Addo eventually overcame the challenges and became President of Ghana.
Turning to the NPP’s current flagbearer, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Ms. Manu said he also faced resistance from different groups within the party while seeking leadership.
She praised Dr. Bawumia for contributing to policy-based political discussions in Ghana and for remaining composed following the NPP’s defeat in the 2024 elections.
According to her, party members must now rally behind him in the same way they supported former Presidents Kufuor and Akufo-Addo.
Ms. Manu, however, warned that internal divisions and a sense of entitlement remain major threats to the party’s future.
She argued that some party members place too much emphasis on how long individuals have belonged to the NPP rather than on their contributions and capabilities.
“This entitlement does not question impact. It does not ask what you sacrificed or what you built. It asks only how long have you been here,” she said.
The former parliamentary candidate cautioned that such attitudes could discourage committed members and prevent the party from selecting the best people for leadership positions.
She further called on the party’s incoming national executives to strengthen the NPP’s core values of sacrifice, honesty, integrity and dedication to national development.
Ms. Manu addressed the concerns of young party supporters, many of whom she said became discouraged following the NPP’s electoral defeat in 2024.
According to her, many young people remain eager to see the party return to power but are unwilling to support internal conflicts driven by personal ambitions.
She urged party elders to place the interests of the NPP above their individual goals and to demonstrate leadership that attracts rather than alienates members.
“The NPP is bigger than any one of us. It always has been. Our collective responsibility is to act like it,” she stated.
By: Jacob Aggrey
