The National Population Council with support from the United Nations Population Fund launched the national 2009 world population day on the theme: “Responding to the Global Economic Crisis: Investing in Women in Ghana is a Smart Choice.”

The day was postponed from the designated 11th July to the 29th July due to President Obama’s visit to Ghana on that day. Obviously, his coming would have overshadowed probably any other event in Ghana.

Mr. Makane Kane gave an address to welcome the panel and other invited guests. In his statement, he quoted the UN Secretary General as saying: “When you empower a woman, you empower the family. When you empower a woman, you change the world”. He highlighted the need to safeguard the International Conference on Population and Development agenda and also the targets set out in the eight Millennium Development goals. He also emphasized that investing in social protection strategies will bring enormous gains in human development.

One mitigating effect of the global economic crisis is reduction in trade revenue for developing countries like Ghana. Speaking to the issue, the minister of Trade and Industry, Mrs. Hannah Tetteh bemoaned this unfortunate phenomenon and said that since women form a greater workforce in the agric sector, they are mostly affected. She however mentioned that her ministry is embarking on a rural enterprises project which is targeting and empowering women to go into business to mitigate this effect on themselves and the family.

POLITICAL TWISTS

Again and again, politicians in Ghana always want to put a political twist to fundamentally national issues; issues that ought to be looked at from the social protection point of view. Honest politicians are what we need. Mrs. Hannah Tetteh hastily requested to run a test case using the number of people present at the function. What she simply did not get (I was surprised though) was that the people present were well-informed and educated. They don’t have problems with family planning. She is neglecting the millions more who are on the streets who do not understand basic family planning procedure as a solution to their economic problems.

The keynote address was delivered by the minister for Women and Children’s Affairs, Mrs. Akua Sena Dansua. In her address, she stated the need to draw some key recommendations from the G-8 Conference of Parliamentarians which was held in Rome, on the theme: “Strategic Investments in Responding to the Global Economic Crisis”.
She continued that since children’s welfare is dependent on women’s income (A global report established), we must invest in every facet of women’s life, especially in women’s reproduction health and ensure that women get unhindered access to family planning services which will reduce both infant and maternal mortality. She later launched the day officially in Ghana.

FAMILY PLANNING IS KEY
The issues were sheer economics and women. However, the discussion was brought down to ‘family planning’. It was very imperative to identify family planning as a cost effective and strategic way of investing in women. And it’s simple: Fewer children mean more resources to cater for them; there’s going to be more literates; reduction in both maternal and infant mortality and so on.

There was a panel to deliberate on the issues at stake. These were some statements and observations that the discussants made:

Dr. William Ahadzie (Center for Social Policy Studies, UG): “When there is a need for cuts in public spending, the social sector suffers most. -- There is a ‘disconnect’ between macroeconomic stability and human social development. -- We must change the way we make women drop out of school to take on menial jobs to complement family income. Instead, we must ensure they get to the highest point possible to get greater incomes to support the family.”

Mr. Makane Kane: (Country Rep. UNFPA): “We must change the perception that women are just economic agents to women as agents of change, women as ‘heroes’. -- How can we quantify the contribution of women in say midwifery, law, engineering, teaching and so on. –We must have ‘pro-women’ responsive policies”.

Dr. Gloria Quansah-Asare (Dir. Family Health Division, GHS): “Family planning use keep rising and declining and is currently at 17 percent. -- Abortion laws are not well understood. -- Family planning fits into all MDGs. -- Family planning services and contraceptives must be part of the NHIS package”.

Mrs. Esther Apewokin (Executive Director, NPC): “Government is not willing to invest in programmes that yield results over longer periods, such as Population programming. -- We should not compromise on fertility issues”.

The panel discussion was moderated by Dr. Andrew Arkutu, Chairman Designate of the National Population Council. The event brought together other guests like the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr. Rashid Pelpuo, the government statistician, Mrs. Grace Bediako, young people from Young and Wise and the Children and Youth in Broadcasting- Curious Minds.