Accra: Civil society organizations (CSOs), women's rights advocates, and legal experts have begun a two-day national stakeholder workshop in Accra aimed at advancing family law reforms and promoting women's rights in Ghana. The gathering, which runs from September 10 to 11, 2025, is being convened by the Initiative for Gender Equality and Development in Africa (IGED-Africa) in partnership with the Solidarity of African Women's Rights (SOAWR) Coalition and hosted by Equality Now, Kenya.
According to Ghana News Agency, the workshop comes at a critical moment in Ghana's gender and family law reform agenda, as attention shifts to the implementation of the Affirmative Action (Gender Equity) Act, 2024 (Act 1121), and renewed advocacy for the passage of the long-delayed Property Rights of Spouses Bill and the Interstate Succession Bill. These legislations are regarded as key to addressing entrenched gender inequalities, safeguarding the economic rights of women, and strengthening the legal framework for family relations in Ghana.
The stakeholders include representatives of women's rights groups, gender advocates, social policy experts, lawyers, and civil society leaders. Ms. Sylvia Horname Noagbesen, Executive Director of IGED-Africa, speaking at the opening of the two-day stakeholder meeting, said the convening was timely as it provided an opportunity for stakeholders to collectively reflect on family law reforms and women's rights. She emphasized that family law touched everyone's life, transcending legal technicalities, and must remain a priority for national dialogue and reform.
Ms. Noagbesen traced IGED-Africa's work to long-standing challenges around property rights, land rights, and inheritance laws, noting that the organization's vision was deeply rooted in advancing reforms that directly impact women's access to justice, equity, and dignity. She stressed that no single organization could drive these changes alone, underscoring the importance of coalitions such as SOAWR and the African Family Law Network, which bring together actors across the continent to push for reforms and align national laws with international commitments like the Maputo Protocol.
Ms. Esther Waweru, Senior Legal Advisor at Equality Now, situated the workshop within broader regional and continental advocacy efforts. She recalled that the meeting builds on the outcomes of the Kampala Regional Strategic Consultation on Family Law Reform in Africa held in March 2024, which identified Ghana as a priority country due to its progress on the Affirmative Action Bill and the vibrant role of civil society. Ms. Waweru highlighted that while Ghana had made progress, particularly with the passage of the Affirmative Action Act 2024, significant gaps remained.
She reminded participants that Article 22 of Ghana's 1992 Constitution mandated Parliament to enact legislation on spousal property rights 'as soon as practicable.' Over three decades later, she noted, this obligation remained unfulfilled, perpetuating inequalities, particularly for widows and children disadvantaged under customary and religious practices. Ms. Waweru noted that the workshop's deliberations should focus on ensuring that the provisions of the Affirmative Action Act move beyond paper into meaningful implementation, addressing Parliament's long delay in passing key family law bills despite constitutional guarantees, reconciling tensions between statutory, customary, and religious laws, and strengthening civil society advocacy to sustain progress in the face of political and cultural resistance.
Mrs. Sheila Minka-Premo, Convenor of the Affirmative Action Law Coalition, advocated for stronger strategies to ensure the full implementation of the Affirmative Action Act and other gender-related legislations. She noted that while the law placed obligations on Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to periodically report on measures to promote gender equity, this responsibility had not been adequately enforced. Mrs. Minka-Premo stressed that advocacy groups must consider options such as litigation and sustained parliamentary engagement to ensure compliance, while also pushing for constitutional reforms that would strengthen the legal foundation for gender equality.
The deliberations at the stakeholder workshop are expected to produce concrete advocacy strategies, comparative lessons from other countries, and strengthened collaboration among Ghanaian CSOs. These strategies are expected to contribute to accelerating Ghana's family law reform process, ensuring that legislations like the Affirmative Action Act, the Property Rights of Spouses Bill, and the Interstate Succession Bill move from paper to practice.
