Plan International Ghana supports 81 women’s groups to provide skills training for women, girls

More than 81 Women’s Rights Organisations (WROs) across the country have been supported with grants to provide skill training for women and young girls.

Plan International Ghana provided the grants of varied amounts under its initiative known as the Women’s Voice and Leadership (WVL) project, which has come to an end.

The five-year women and girls empowerment project, launched in 2019 and funded by Global Affairs, directly impacted 3,200 women across 15 regions of the country.

Speaking at the close-out ceremony of the project held in Accra on Tuesday, Manager of the project,Ms Theodore Asare, said the beneficiaries received vocational training and education on gender-based violence, enabling them to support their families and reduce violence.

Ms Asare encouraged all beneficiaries of the project to build on their skills and continue expanding their impact.

“Today we are celebrating five years of impactful work in localisation and the empowerment of women and girls. I urge all beneficiaries to use whatever they have learnt to add value to their lives,” she added.

On his part, the Country Director of Plan International Ghana, Mr Constant Tchona, underscored the transformative nature of the WVL project, emphasising its roots in African Feminist principles.

He stated that the project had cultivated a culture of co-creation, flexibility, and transparency in delivering gender-transformative programmes.

This approach, he said, had significantly empowered women and girls, breaking cycles of poverty and building a more resilient, peaceful, inclusive, and prosperous society.

“The introduction of Canada’s Feminist International Assistance Policy in 2017 paved the way for the WVL programme, which was launched in Ghana in 2019. Since then, the gender landscape in Ghana has improved, with increased investment from development partners in WROs.”

“These organisations have played a crucial role in advocating for women’s empowerment, justice, and equality,” he said.

Despite their significant contributions, WROs he said faced challenges such as inadequate capacity in governance, human resource management, and external donor engagement, compounded by a dwindling funding landscape.

To address these issues, he indicated that the WVL project allocated over 65 percent of its budget directly to support WROs through grant funding and capacity building.

Mr Tchona further highlighted the project’s success in enhancing women’s self-esteem, confidence, and leadership abilities, adding that the WVL project has strengthened the agency of women and girls across four key domains which are access and control over productive resources, participation and decision-making, social norms, and engaging moral and primary duty bearers and institutions.

He stressed the importance of continuing to build a pipeline of strong female leaders, citing the recent Young Female Leaders Conference in Tamale, which hosted over 90 girls and young women from seven regions, as an example of efforts to ensure a vibrant future for the Women’s Rights Movement in Ghana.

He re-affirmed his outfit’s commitment to improving the lives of children, especially girls and young women, by addressing the root causes of gender inequality.

He also called for collective efforts to redefine leadership, amplify women’s voices, and create a future where gender equality is a lived reality.

A representative of the Ministry of Gender Children and Social Protection Ms Vera Karikari praised the project’s impressive reach and strategic alignment with the ministry’s programming goals.

“The ministry is impressed by the number of WROs reached through this project,” she added.

BY RAISSA SAMBOU

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