MINISTER ENGAGES CSOs TO DRIVE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

As part of her commitment to fostering effective partnerships, the Minister for Gender, Children, and Social Protection, Hon. Dr. Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, met with key stakeholders from Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) on Thursday, 6th February 2025.

The engagement aimed to formally introduce the Minister to the CSOs and enhance collaboration in key areas, including child and social protection, reducing vulnerability, and empowering women.

Interacting with the stakeholders, Hon. Dr. Agnes Lartey commended the CSOs for their ongoing support and partnership with the Ministry, emphasizing her commitment to strengthening these collaborations.

“As a Ministry, we are poised to continue working with you and even do better. You have invaluable expertise that we can tap into to make this country a better place for all,” she stated.

She highlighted President Mahama’s strong commitment to reducing vulnerability and assured of working hand-in-hand with CSOs, as well as other relevant agencies, to strengthen social protection systems that benefit the majority.

The Sector Minister also reaffirmed the President’s dedication to decentralizing the School Feeding Programme to ensure that every Ghanaian child benefits.

She announced plans to embark on a field monitoring visit to engage beneficiaries and stakeholders firsthand, assessing challenges, and identifying ways to improve the programme effectively.

On women’s empowerment, Hon. Dr. Agnes Lartey emphasized her commitment to supporting female entrepreneurs through the Women’s Development Bank. She noted that the Bank would provide tailored financial solutions with flexible terms to help women grow small and medium-sized enterprises.

In addition, she commended stakeholders who contributed to the passage of the Affirmative Action Act and assured them of the Ministry’s commitment to ensure its full implementation whiles making continuous efforts to review other outdated policies to align with current trends.

She also highlighted the President’s commitment to introduce free tertiary education for persons with disabilities, and noted that she has engaged the Ministers of Finance and Education on how to implement that promise within the first 120 days of the current administration.

The CSOs also took turns to brief the Minister on their work and shared insights on how they could further collaborate with the Ministry to achieve the government’s overall agenda.

The meeting brought together representatives from Wildaf, Netright, Abantu for Development, Ghana Women Forum, GenCED, Women Media and Change, Free the Slaves, Engage Now Africa, Expertise France, and others.

Present at the meeting was the Chief Director for the Ministry, Dr. Afisah Zakariah.

This meeting marks a renewed commitment to strengthening partnerships that drive social protection, gender equality, and national development.

Source: MoGCSP