STATEMENT BY HON. MINISTER AT THE CENTENARY CELEBRATION OF THE LATE OSAGYEFO DR. KWAME NKRUMAH

I am very honoured at the opportunity to speak at this very important event to mark the 100th birthday of the Founder and First President of our dear Nation, Ghana. I would like with your indulgence to start my speech by asking these simple questions which I respectfully ask that we answer individually. Is Ghana’s history complete without Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah? Did women play a part in Ghana’s independence struggle and can Ghana’s development be complete without the effective participation of women?

Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, it is on behalf of the hardworking and committed women of Ghana that I stand before you to make this short speech. We are celebrating Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah today, because of his monumental achievements, including spearheading Ghana’s independence on March 6th, 1957.

Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, most of you will recall that, Ghana’s independence was fought and won with the active participation of men and women, the youth, Chiefs, Queen mothers and even children because of the involvement of some of us as Young Pioneers. In recognition of the great contribution of women in the independence struggle Dr Nkrumah created non-elected seats for them in Parliament.

I am recalling these facts to emphasise the major role that Ghanaian women played at independence and continue to play in the development of our country. Presently, women constitute about 70% of the players in the informal sector and care giving in homes. Unfortunately these contributions are minimally counted because these services are largely unweighted and uncaptured in the calculation of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Ghana.

We look forward expectedly to next year’s census to address some of these concerns but the most important challenges for women in Ghana today as we mark Dr Nkrumah’s Centenary is how to maximise our representation in decision making (especially at the district and national levels where planning and resource allocation decisions are made) and ensure that the concerns of women and children who together, constitute about 70% of our national population are effectively addressed.

After 53 years of independence, can we say that we have empowered our women enough when presently, we have less than 10% representation of women in Ghana’s 230-Seat Parliament?

Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, research shows that, the empowerment of women politically, economically and socially inures to the benefit of nations. It is therefore the right and wise thing to do.

We need to support and create space for women to effectively participate in national development. We need particularly the cooperation, collaboration and facilitation of men who should see women as partners and collaborators in development and not as rivals in the quest for power.

His Excellency, President J.E.A. Mills has committed to ensuring at least 40% representation of women in decision-making and the challenge to all of us Ghanaians, no matter where we find ourselves is to make this happen in the shortest possible time.

This is one of the best legacies we can bequeath, Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah because that will be in actualisation of one of his dreams to empower women to participate effectively in national development.

Long Live Ghana.Long Live Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah, the friend of Ghanaian women, of Africa and the World.

Long live the hardworking women and our dear children of Ghana.

Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Mausoleum, Accra
September 21, 2009.