Parliament has commemorated African Women’s Day with a renewed call to promote gender equality and strengthen the role of women in driving sustainable development, as Members of Parliament from both sides of the House lent their voices to the occasion.
The commemoration was marked through a statement delivered by the Member of Parliament for Atwima Nwabiagya South, Hon. Shirley Kyei, on African Women’s Day as observed by the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus of the African Parliamentary Union (APU), drawing wide-ranging comments and reflections from lawmakers across the House.
Speaking under the theme “Women Securing Africa’s Water Future, Advancing Sustainable Sanitation and Water for Agenda 2063,” Hon. Kyei used her statement to spotlight the central role women play in managing water resources within their communities, an area she said has long depended on women’s leadership yet frequently receives insufficient policy attention.
She stressed the need to improve access to safe water and sanitation, placing particular emphasis on the challenges facing women and girls in rural communities, where the burden of water collection and management often falls disproportionately on them, affecting everything from health outcomes to educational attendance.
Beyond the specific focus on water and sanitation, Hon. Kyei’s statement paid tribute to the broader contributions African women have made across multiple facets of the continent’s development journey, recognising their role in advancing peace, strengthening democratic governance, and driving socio-economic progress in their respective countries and communities.
This tribute situated the day’s water and sanitation theme within a larger narrative of women’s historical and ongoing contributions to Africa’s stability and growth, reinforcing the idea that empowering women extends benefits well beyond any single policy area.
Call for Continued Policy Support
Hon. Kyei closed her statement with a direct appeal to Parliament and other stakeholders to sustain and deepen support for policies and reforms aimed at advancing women’s empowerment and gender equality across the continent. Her appeal framed the commemoration not merely as a symbolic observance, but as an occasion to renew concrete institutional commitment toward closing persistent gender gaps in access to resources, decision-making and development opportunities.
“Empowering women through stronger policies is essential to achieving sustainable development and gender equality.”
Member of Parliament for Atwima Nwabiagya South, Hon. Shirley Kyei,
The statement drew responses from Members of Parliament across both sides of the House, with lawmakers offering their own reflections on the significance of the day and the broader themes raised by Hon. Kyei.
This cross-party engagement reflected a shared recognition of the importance of gender equality as a development priority, transcending the usual lines of political division that often characterise parliamentary debate on other issues.
The breadth of participation in the discussion underscored the extent to which African Women’s Day has become an occasion for Ghana’s Parliament to collectively affirm its commitment to gender-responsive policymaker, even as the specific legislative steps needed to advance such commitments remain an ongoing area of work.
Linking Gender Equality to Agenda 2063
By anchoring the discussion in the theme of Agenda 2063, the African Union’s long-term development blueprint for the continent, the commemoration placed Ghana’s parliamentary reflections within a broader continental framework for sustainable development.
This connection reinforced the idea that progress on water security and sanitation, particularly as it relates to women’s roles and needs, is not merely a national concern but part of a shared continental agenda that African nations are collectively working toward.
“Gender equality is not just a women’s issue; it is a national and continental development priority.”
Member of Parliament for Atwima Nwabiagya South, Hon. Shirley Kyei,
Taken together, the commemoration of African Women’s Day in Parliament served as both a moment of reflection on the contributions of African women to peace, democracy and development, and a renewed call to action on addressing the specific challenges women continue to face, particularly around access to water and sanitation in underserved rural areas.
With Hon. Kyei’s appeal for sustained policy support now on record before the House, attention turns to how Parliament and other stakeholders will translate the sentiments expressed during the commemoration into tangible legislative and policy action aimed at advancing gender equality, both within Ghana and as part of the continent’s broader development goals under Agenda 2063.
READ MORE:Traditional Medicine Council Shuts 30 Facilities Over Regulatory Breaches
