ActionAid Ghana holds national dialogue on sexual harassment

ActionAid Ghana has held a national dialogue with stakeholders to deliberate on issues concerning sexual harassment at the workplace.

Speaking at the one-day seminar held in Accra, the country director of ActionAid Ghana, Suamaila Abdul Rahman stated that the legislation of sexual harassment at the workplace must be taken seriously; adding that women and girls must be protected at all times.

“Access to decent work is key and the focus of our work is as part of an effort in the evidence-based advocacy. We commissioned research in 2018 that showed that women in the informal sector also face sexual harassment. 67% were between the ages 19-35years and 18% were under the age of 18 and 13% were aged between 36-45years,” he said.

The programme is geared towards changing the narrative of sexual advances made against women at workplaces.

Its focus is to find stringent solutions to the challenges women face at the workplaces.

During a panel discussion, stakeholders advocated that laws on sexual exploitation and abuse against women in society must be harnessed to ensure culprits are dealt with when found guilty.

According to the panellist, there are legal actions that deal with these issues but unfortunately, enacting seems stressful rendering the victim to sometimes give up in the process of seeking justice.

The panellists noted that the issue of sexual harassment is predominant in offices but there seem to be scattered laws.

He reiterated that due to victimization people are also afraid to pursue the case to the apex court.

Meanwhile, ActionAid Ghana is a global justice federation, working to achieve social justice, gender equality, and poverty eradication.

In Ghana, it supports the basic needs and rights of the poor, with an emphasis on human rights, women's rights, land rights, and the right to education.