Queen mothers in the Upper East Region have called on the government and its mandated state agencies to develop and operationalize guidelines that would enable survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) to access medical services for free.
The queen mothers are also appealing to the government to recruit more clinical psychologists for the Ghana Health Service in the regions and set up a Domestic Violence Fund with a quarterly quota from the consolidated fund.
Addressing a presser in Bolgatanga on Wednesday (24 November 2021), queen mother for Bongo-Feo Pognaba Felicia Agamboka, who read a statement on their behalf, said they were deeply concerned about the increasing rate of sexual and gender-based violence and the weak redress mechanisms which tend to embolden perpetrators.
She said the Upper East Region alone in 2020 recorded 65 cases of defilement, a situation that called for government intervention to end the incidence of sexual and gender-based violence in the Ghanaian communities.
“While commending government and its mandated state agencies for the various policies and programs as well as support for Survivors, we are deeply concerned about increasing rate of SGBV and weak redress mechanisms which emboldens perpetrators. For instance, 65 cases of defilement were recorded in 2020 alone in the region.”
“Government through Ghana Health Service should develop and widely publicise across all health facilities clear operational guidelines on accessing free medical care for SGBV Survivors with clear penal measures for defaulters who insist on charging survivors.”
“Government should resource and make operational the domestic violence fund by setting aside a quota from the consolidated fund to be transferred to the DV fund quarterly.”
Proposed policies
The queen mothers further suggested additional policies which they urged the government and state agencies to implement to support survivors of sexual and gender-based violence.
Some of the policies included training professional counsellors for the region, setting up special courts in all districts to handle gender-based violence and juvenile cases and the provisions of shelter homes for survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence.
The Queen Mothers in the statement said, “All District Assemblies in the Upper East Region should liaise with the Department of Social Welfare to train professional Counselors since there is only one in the region. The Upper East Regional Health Directorate should recruit more Clinical Psychologists in the region. Special Courts for GBV and Juvenile cases should be set up across all districts to promote speedy adjudication and redress.”
“The Ministry of Gender and Social Protection and its development partners should invest in shelter homes as safe spaces for survivors seeking justice. The Regional House of Chiefs should exercise its mandate to abolish negative gender norms through by-laws and peer review arrangements. Relevant State Agencies such as CHRAJ, DOVVSU should be decentralized to all districts.”
The queen mothers drawn from various communities across the Upper East Region are part of the RISE-Ghana ENOUGH! Project which is being funded by the European Union.
As part of activities, the Queen Mothers have been engaging community members, state and non-state agencies, parents, children and traditional leaders on sexual and gender-based violence issues including rape, teenage pregnancies, child abuse and seeking justice for victims.
Other partners of the ENOUGH! Project are OXFAM in Ghana and WiLDAF-Ghana.
Senyalah Castro
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