Gender issues are not wars between sexes – Gender Expert

Ms. Melody M. Darkey, the National Programmes Coordinator for the Women in Law and Development in Africa (WILDAF), Ghana, has stressed that gender issues are not the creation of war between men and women.She said most often, when gender issues crop up, people have the notion that it's only about the promotion of women, stating, however, that gender covers all social roles and responsibilities society has ascribed to both men and women.She added that gender is creating the platform for men and women to have the same opportunity in all spheres of life.She noted that, over the years, women have been left behind in all aspects of life, the reason for women empowerment programmes to bring them at the same level as men.Ms. Darkey said that some men always feel gender issues do not concern them because it is a way of empowering only women, noting that due to this perception, most men term gender education as 'Mbaa Nkomo' to wit ladies talk, stressing that 'Gender issues affect both male and female.'She sa id this at an ongoing Covid-19 Skills Development and Productivity Enhancement Project (PSDPEP) training for Ghana News Agency (GNA) staff on advocacy reporting in health communication, youth entrepreneurship, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) promotion, gender, and climate change issues at Sogakope.The training, funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) through the Social Investment Fund (SIF), is being implemented by the Institute for Digital Marketing and Communication Ghana (IDMC Ghana).She defined gender as a socially constructed perception of 'man-ness and woman-ness,' explaining that, based on this definition, society has ascribed some roles to both sexes, which is preventing people from reaching their capabilities and pursuing their passion.She added that 'in our society today, certain works have been associated with men, and ladies who dare to take up such roles have been stereotyped and called all sorts of names that discourage them.'Ms. Darkey advised parents to start trainin g their kids to understand the effect of stereotypes and encourage them to take up roles that would better their lives.She also encouraged religious bodies, schools, and the media to speak about the issues of gender and discouraged stereotypes in all forms.Source: Ghana News Agency