Ghana’s Women Have Their Day in Court
In Ghana, one in three women experience physical abuse during their lifetime. Finally, they have a legal recourse.
In Ghana, one in three women experience physical abuse during their lifetime. Through the dedicated work of Women in Law and Development-Ghana (WiLDAF-Ghana), a Canadian Crossroads International partner, and other women’s groups across Ghana, abused women now have legal recourse: a law specifically criminalizing domestic violence was enacted in May 2007.
The victory was just one of many that WiLDAF-Ghana has achieved for women. The organization, part of a pan-African network based in Harare, Zimbabwe, regularly defends the rights of women in divorce, estate and abuse cases, through its legal aid centre in Accra. WiLDAF also trains paralegals who provide services throughout the county.
CCI and WiLDAF have worked together since 2007 and have recently initiated a partnership with the Metropolitan Action Committee on Violence Against Women and Children (METRAC) based in Toronto. METRAC offers programs to train frontline workers on the laws affecting victims of abuse – an ideal resource for WiLDAF as it begins to promote the Ghana Domestic Violence Act. To ensure Ghanaian women are aware of the legal options now available to them, Crossroads volunteers are supporting WiLDAF’s awareness raising efforts of the new domestic violence act.