Gender ministry organises mothers day

The Department of Gender under the auspices of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection in collaboration with the Ministry of Information on Monday, 11th May, 2020 organised this year’s Mother’s Day at the Ministry of Information Conference room under the theme “THE ROLE OF MOTHERS IN THE FACE OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC.”

In her welcome statement, the Chief Director for the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr. Afisah Zakariah said the Ministry has set aside the day to celebrate the immeasurable contributions of all Ghanaian women.

She said this year’s celebration is unique because of the new face in life that has emerged globally due to the Corona Virus pandemic.

The Chief Director added that the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and the Ministry of Information have therefore organised the programme in order to discuss some emerging responsibilities of mothers, identify Covid-19 related challenges confronting mothers as homemakers, office workers and leaders amongst other task and dialogue on measures that mothers can adopt to become more effective and also to identify problems of mothers that needed government attention.

The Ag. Director for the Department of Gender, Dr. Comfort Asare called on all mothers to keep up the good work in caring for their children even in the face of challenges

The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Hon. Cynthia Mamle Morrison in her keynote address said Mothers are recognized, acknowledged and accredited as the bedrock of human civilization.

She noted that, Mother’s Day is not only celebrating mothers who have biological relationship with their children but also all women who are taking care of children and households.

She further stressed that the celebration of Mother’s Day is very relevant to the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection since it presents the Ministry with an opportunity to acknowledge significant contributions of Ghanaian women as mothers and the need to harness their full potentials for accelerated and sustainable national development.

Hon. Cynthia Mamle Morrison noted that the contribution of mothers to Ghana’s economy over the years has been tremendous and visible socially, culturally, politically and economically.

The Minister went on to say that Government has put up interventions to reduce some of the economic and job losses that may arise as a result of the Corona Virus pandemic.

The Deputy Minister for Information, Hon Pius Enam Hadzide used the opportunity to encourage women to put in more effort to access the GH¢600 million stimulus package instituted by the Government through the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) for small and micro scale companies across the country.

The President of the Greater Accra Markets Association, Mercy Afrowa Needjan pledged to support the government in educating market women to ensure that market women adhere to the safety protocols in order to stay safe amidst the Corona Virus pandemic.

As part of the celebrations, Mrs. Selikem Acolatse moderated a panel discussion on the Role of Mothers in the Face of Covid-19 Pandemic. Mrs. Roberta Otchere-Darko from the Roberta Otchere-Darko (ROD) Foundation and Mrs Mercy Mainoo from the Network for Women's Rights in Ghana NETRIGHT were the panelists.