The Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment (WISE), a nongovernmental organisation, has called for collaborative efforts to counter Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) by standing up and promoting shared values of peaceful coexistence between men and women.
Mrs Joana Adzoa Opare, Board Chair of WISE said the United Nations Women 2022 Report which was released in February this year, indicated that one in every four Ghanaian women had suffered physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner.
This, she said needed the attention of all stakeholders, and that since December 2020, WISE had raised considerable public awareness of SGBV and as well provided survivor support services through advocacy and public education with an objective of reducing the incidents. Mrs Opare made the call in her opening remarks on the sidelines of the evaluation of Women’s Voice and Leadership (WVL)/ WISE SGBV Project, a forum which was also in line with its ‘Network of Media Partners’ Appreciation Day.’
She was speaking against the backdrop of increasing rates of incidence of violence being perpetrated against women, particularly by intimate partners. The event on the theme “Building a Gender Responsive Media to Enhance Public Education on Sexual and Gender Based Violence”; also honoured some selected media houses championing sensitization programmes and educating the public on issues of SGBV in society.
Mrs Opare commended its network of media partners for playing a critical role in addressing SGBV, saying, they had been able to carry out a lot of activities to ensure the project had an impact on its targets and stakeholders.
“Some of the suggestions you made as strategies for WISE to adopt during the evaluation touched on; engaging editors of the various media houses; requesting in-house meetings with all staff of media houses on their premises; lobbying the Gender Ministry and Ministry of Communications to mandate media houses to develop and implement gender policies.” She said. Mrs Opare underscored the need for more sensitization sessions and training for decision makers within the media space to deepen their knowledge on gender-based violence in society.
The Board Chair of WISE, who appealed to media houses to give their platforms to different voices, also urged the media to give out information that will not retraumatize the victims of SGBV. Madam Adwoa Bame, Executive Director of WISE said there was a need to shame perpetrators who were involved in the act.
She mentioned that within the three-year period of the project there had been advocacy and response campaigns where they engaged with schools, communities and the media, to be able educate the public on issues of SGBV with the view to reduce the incidents. Touching on targets, she said WISE had not been able to engage as much as they could due to funding issues and the economic situation in the country, however, she was happy about what had been achieved.
WISE is a non-governmental and non-profit organization dedicated to providing counseling and other support services for survivors of domestic violence, with a focus on women and children.
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