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PAST ACTIVITIES

Simplification of the Hand book on
the Rights of the Ghanaian Child
Activisim for the Girl Child
Legal Literacy

FIDA Ghana has achieved a lot since its formation in 1974. The organisation has to a large extent not only seen to but also to helped in the achievement of many milestones in the empowrment of women and also the liberation of women from cultural practices that are harmful to them.

FIDA has through its Legal Aid Clinics managed to enforce the law as to maintenance of children and spouses by many a recalcitrant father and husband in thousands of cases.

FIDA played a great role in the passage of the new intestate Succession Law PNDCL 111.Since the enactment of this law, the plight of the Ghanaian widow, whose husband died intestate has improved greatly.Hitherto,a woman whose husband died without leaving a will was practically stripped of all her possessions such that she was left with no means of support for either herself or her children.

During the last presidential and parliamentary elections in Ghana in December 2000, FIDA played a vital role in organising all the women candidates of the different Political Parties to ensure that the were given fair chances by their various parties.

They also organised a seminar after the elections to find out the problems encountered by the women thereafter came out with a white paper so as to craete a better environment for future elections.

FIDA is also playing a great role in putting pressure on the current parliament to pass a Domestic Violence Bill to help women and children who are subjects of abuse.

In the year 2000, when there was an upsurge in the brutal killings of Ghanaian women in Accra, FIDA played a very vital role in getting the government in taking positive steps to protect the women in Accra.[back to top]

Fourth quarter 2001-third quarter 2002 activities are highlighted as follows:

FIDA-Ghana, with the assistance of GTZ, simplified the Children's Act of 1998 act 560 and the Criminal Code (Amendment) Act 1998, Act 554. The purpose of the simplification is to make the law understandable and accessible ot children. An understanding of their rights will empower the children and serve as a tool for protecting themselves.
FIDA-Ghana disseminated the Rights of the Ghanaian Child handbook in twenty Primary and Junior secondary schools, Parents and Teachers Associations (PTA), and ten non-governmental organisations involved in childrens issues. The dissemination was sponsored by the Rights Protection Arm of UNICEF.

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As part of an International campaign entitled sicteen days activism, FIDA-Ghana in collaboration with other non-governmental organisations, advocacy groups and concerned citizens participated in a march and floatl to highlight the abuses perpertuated against the girl child. FIDA-Ghana asserts that if the violence and the general lack of female empowerment are not counteracted early, it will become increasingly difficult ot address the issues during womanhood.

FIDA-Ghana launched the handbook on the rights of the Ghanaian woman during the quarter in review. This book is a simplification of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Ghana was one of the first countries to ratify CEDAW, the handbook incorporates all Ghanaian statutory laws and constitutional provisions concerning women.

Mobile Legal Aid Clinics are launched as frequently as possible by FIDA-Ghana in order to disseminate information concerning women and children's rights and to provide legal aid to those regions in Ghana that do not have FIDA offices.
FIDA-Ghana with the assistance of UNICEF and FCO embarked on a series of mobile clinics in the Ashanti, Central and Eastern Regions of Ghana.[back to top]