The Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) will on Wednesday, January 31, 2018, organise a training workshop for journalists and women’s rights advocates on issues pertaining to women’s use of the internet in Ghana.
The workshop seeks to highlight the prevailing issues hindering women’s participation online and how the media and women’s rights groups in Ghana can collaborate for increased advocacy to provide solutions.
Ahead of the event, the Programme Manager for Freedom of Expression at MFWA, Mrs. Dora B. Mawutor, emphasised the importance of unhindered Internet access and usage in promoting women’s personal growth and development.
“Given the important role the Internet plays, it is about time we begin empowering women and girls on how to explore the benefits it presents for their personal growth and development. Although Ghana has made progress in its digital landscape, challenges such as access, affordability, know-how, lack of infrastructure and online harassment still remain, with women paying the heaviest toll,” Mrs Mawutor said.
A baseline report on Women’s Rights Online Issues in Ghana produced by the MFWA indicates that women are more limited and restricted in the use of the internet. This is largely due to the fact that the traditional challenges women face offline are reflected in the cyberspace as well.
The workshop forms part of a number of activities under the MFWA’s project on promoting women’s rights online. The project seeks to create an enabling digital environment for increased women’s use of the internet in Ghana.