By Rebecca Ekpe
‘’Mr Speaker, my government will continue to ensure gender equality and equity, promote the welfare and protection of children’s rights, and empower the vulnerable, the aged, and persons with disabilities for sustainable national development,’’ President John Mahama (SONA 2026).
The Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 represents a historic shift in Ghana’s policy landscape on gender equality. After decades of advocacy and debate, dating back to attempts in the 1960s. Parliament finally passed the law in July 2024, during President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo’s tenure, marking a legal framework to correct systemic gender imbalances in governance and decision-making spaces.
Key Provisions and Targets
Primarily, the Act requires a Mandatory representation, where women are to constitute at least 30% of members in key decision-making bodies by 2026, rising to 35% by 2028 and then 50% by 2034. Some pessimists have criticised what they termed an ‘’overly’’ ambitious expectation. However, the government under President Mahama has shown some commitment to achieving these targets. At a recent Women in Government and Media Forum in Accra, the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Administration at the Presidency, Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, disclosed that ‘’women currently make up approximately 23.21 percent of political appointments, reflecting progress toward the 30 percent benchmark outlined in the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024’’. She said, this steady increase ‘’demonstrates a deliberate commitment to inclusive leadership that mirrors the diversity of Ghana’s population’’.
Furthermore, the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 also mandates gender-responsive budgeting, prohibition of discrimination, political party compliance, and private-sector incentives for gender equity.
Statistical Reality Check
Currently, women hold only about 14.9% of seats in Ghana’s Parliament (41 of 276 MPs). Also, women occupy just 26% of leadership positions in the public service.
In contrast, the judiciary has made significant progress with near parity (49.7% women) among judges, showcasing where affirmative measures have better traction.
This uneven progress underscores that while the Affirmative Action law catalyses national dialogue and policy direction, Ghana has a lot more work to be done in achieving its statutory targets.
At a recent training program for Journalists organized by the Affirmative Action Law Coalition and Abantu for development with support from Action Aid, called on the Gender Equity Committee to ensure that it complies with mandates given under the AA Act. Both Sheila Minka-Premo, Convenor of the AA Law Coalition and Abantu for Development’s Executive Director, Dr. Rose Mensah -Kutin agreed that the media should do more in ‘’narratives and reportage to encourage and support women’s leadership and public life’’, without compromising fair, accountable and accurate reporting.
The Benefits, Impact, and Importance
Affirmative action is not merely symbolic; it directly addresses structural barriers that have historically excluded women from leadership. With women comprising over half the population, their disproportionate underrepresentation undermines democratic representation, equitable governance, and policy relevance.
A larger female presence in government and public life has multiple demonstrated benefits:
Inclusive policy outcomes: Women often prioritize issues linked to education, health, social services, and anti-discrimination areas where female leadership has historically led to broader social gains.
Improved governance: Evidence from other contexts shows that gender-balanced leadership can enhance transparency, accountability, and public trust, often critical for good governance.
Economic performance: Women’s economic participation fuels productivity, innovation and growth. Empowered women with decision-making power contribute significantly to national SDGs, especially SDG 5 on gender equality.
Socio-Cultural Impact
Affirmative action also recalibrates societal norms. In Ghanaian cultural contexts where patriarchal norms have traditionally limited women’s roles in public and political life, formal legal frameworks help reinforce behavioural and institutional change often challenging stereotypes, expanding opportunities, and encouraging social acceptance of women’s leadership.
Potential Critiques and Looking ahead.
A criticism often raised and visible in public discourse is that affirmative action can be seen as “tokenistic” or as privileging gender over merit. However, advocates counter that affirmative action corrects historical injustice that systematically undermines women’s full participation, often due to barriers unrelated to capability or merit.
Meanwhile, Ghana’s first female Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang has noted that ‘’Inclusive leadership is not symbolic, it is a developmental issue, countries that meaningfully integrate women into decision-making build stronger institutions, more stable governance outcomes, and more inclusive growth., and therefore, women are not only beneficiaries of development, we are among its drivers’’, pointing to the fact that the conversation of and on women and the Affirmative Action continues to be a developmental discourse.
