Minister For Gender Delivers Keynote Address At “She Builds Conference”

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Hon. Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, gave the keynote speech at the She Builds Conference in Accra on Wednesday, September 10, 2025.

The conference, which was organized by The Academic Woman Foundation with the theme “From Margin to Centre: Redefining Women’s Economic Power in Ghana,” brought together women professionals, students, policymakers, and corporate leaders to discuss the role of women in the built environment, engineering, entrepreneurship, and law while also identifying opportunities for innovation and inclusion.

In her keynote speech, the Minister emphasized that despite the fact that women make up 52% of Ghana’s population, only 15% of primary schools employ female teachers, and many girls leave school before completing secondary school because of negative attitudes and detrimental behaviors.

Through the Gender Equity Act, 2024 (Act 1121), she reaffirmed the government’s commitment to women’s empowerment. This act aims to increase the representation of women in leadership, governance, and politics; dismantle systemic barriers to equal opportunities; increase access to education; protect women’s rights in communities and workplaces; encourage entrepreneurship; and strengthen laws against gender-based violence.

“Position is not power. “Power is influence, power is impact, and power is inclusion,” she said, calling for a mental change in which opportunities are driven by aptitude rather than gender.

The Minister also urged stakeholders to picture a Ghana in which women and men co-lead, institutions represent the diversity of the country, and women have equal access to markets, technology, and land.

“Moving from margin to centre is not a favor to women. It is justice. It is not symbolic. It is a strategy. For no nation can prosper if half of it falls,” she said.

Panel discussions, breakout workshops, and “TED-style Talks” on gender equity, entrepreneurship, leadership development, innovation, and the role of technology in influencing Ghana’s future were all included in the event.

Source: newsthemegh.com