Women-lead project launched in Tamale by Swida-Gh

Story: Rahamatu-Lahi Zakaria || Sanatu Zambang

Savannah Women Integrated Development Agency (SWIDA-GH) has launched a project in Tamale to tackle and dismantle gender-stereotypical norms that affect the progress of women in the region and also to mentor and empower young girls.

The project, dubbed: “Women Empowerment for Leadership and Action for Development (Women-LEAD),” is expected to promote gender equality at all levels in the Northern region and it will be implemented in both Tamale Metro and Sagnarigu district with five communities from each district to benefit.

The components for the Women-Lead project include the economic empowerment of women, mobilization, sensitization, and campaign to end gender-based and all forms of violence against women.  Also, the project seeks to work with policymakers and implementers to influence the implementation of gender-sensitive policies through engagements with duty bearers and stakeholders responsible for women issues.

The three-year project is being funded by Global Affairs Canada and Plan International Ghana, under the auspices of Plan International’s “Women’s Voice and Leadership” project in Ghana.

Speaking at the launch of the project, the Executive Director of SWIDA-GH, Hajia Alima Sagito-Saeed, said the organization had identified issues of a high prevalence of gender-based roles and responsibilities faced by women in the implementing districts, hence, the need to undertake the project to help curb the problem.

Miss Khadijah Abdul-Samed, Women-LEAD Project Lead at the SWIDA-GH, said as part of the project they would form HeforShe clubs in basic to tertiary schools to help the campaign against gender-based violence in their communities and also socialized boys to have respect for the girl.

To further help achieve the aim of the project, she explained that, the organization would dialogue with religious and traditional authorities on social norms that impede women’s and girl’s empowerment and find lasting solutions to such issues.

Swida-Gh is a women empowerment Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), based in Tamale with its core mandate to economically empower rural women.  Over the years, Swida-Gh has helped to acquire lands for women to farm, worked with youth groups in the northern region to sensitize and campaign against child marriage, violence against women, and also run mentorship programs for young girls.   

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