The Ghana Employers Association (GEA) is seeking collaboration with the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection to expand a leadership development programme aimed at increasing women’s participation in executive and strategic decision-making roles.
The proposed partnership on the Female Future Programme is expected to strengthen the pipeline of female leaders within Ghana’s corporate and business sectors, with plans to extend the initiative to female Members of Parliament.
Mr Alex Frimpong, Chief Executive Officer of GEA, made the proposal when a delegation from the Association paid a courtesy call on Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, in Accra.
The meeting was to brief the Minister on the programme and explore areas of collaboration to expand its impact.
Mr Frimpong said the Female Future Programme had been implemented by the GEA for the past eight to nine years, providing women in senior management with skills and confidence to progress into higher leadership positions.
He said the programme focused on leadership development, effective communication, corporate governance and other competencies required for executive and strategic management.
Building Ghana’s Female Leadership Pipeline
Mr Frimpong said the Association was seeking to build on the programme’s achievements by extending it to female legislators, drawing on experiences from similar initiatives implemented in other African countries.
He said strengthening women’s leadership capabilities was important to ensuring that businesses and institutions benefited from a broader pool of skilled professionals capable of taking strategic decisions.
The GEA CEO expressed the Association’s readiness to work with the Ministry to adapt and implement the initiative in Ghana.
He said collaboration between the public and private sectors could help create stronger pathways for women to progress into leadership positions across businesses and institutions.
Ministry Welcomes Private Sector Initiative
Dr Lartey welcomed the initiative, saying programmes that strengthened women’s empowerment and leadership development were important to advancing gender equality.
She said the Ministry remained committed to supporting interventions that created opportunities for women to participate effectively in leadership and decision-making.
The Minister encouraged the GEA to submit a comprehensive concept note outlining the proposed programme to enable the Ministry to assess it and provide the necessary technical input.
She said the Ministry would engage relevant leadership and stakeholders to explore areas of collaboration.
Dr Lartey further stressed the need for the programme to be adapted to Ghana’s local context and national priorities to ensure that it delivered meaningful outcomes.
The proposed collaboration forms part of broader efforts to strengthen women’s participation in leadership and expand the pool of female professionals capable of contributing to corporate governance, business growth and national development.
