By William Yaw Owusu
Wednesday April 21, 2010
Women groups, religious bodies, civil society and leadership of political parties have met in Savelugu in the Savelugu/Nanton District of the Northern Region to discuss ways to prevent conflicts in the area.
The two-day workshop, which is under the theme, “Conflict management: Role of the Northern Woman,” was used to sensitise participants, particularly women on peace building mechanisms.
It was organized by Community Development and Youth Advisory Centre (CODETAC) with sponsorship from the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS).
Opening the workshop, which had the District Chief Executive for Savelugu/Nanton, Prince Askia Mohammed bemoaned the numerous conflicts that have hit the northern parts of the country, describing the situation as “impeding the efforts towards the development of the area and the country at large.”
He said, “In the face of endemic poverty, illiteracy and diseases in the region we use our scarce resources to arm ourselves against each other.”
The DCE stressed the need for women to be equipped with conflict prevention skills to ensure lasting peace for development to take place in the north.
Alhaji Dr. Alhussein Zakaria, Executive Director of CODETAC, said the role of women in peace building should be encouraged, adding, “Women were created by God to do good things for society. They are good peace brokers and may be able to do better if they are encouraged particularly by their male counterparts.”
He said naturally, women were created for this role through their linkage system. Women have a lot of links but men tend to be more individualistic. Every woman has a friend and that friend has many other friends. In times of difficulty or joy, this linkage system is normally activated for peace to prevail.”
Alhaji Zakaria said conflicts in the northern part of the country had thwarted efforts to speed up development in the area, saying it had helped to bring widespread and endemic poverty among the people.
He said for instance the protracted conflict in Yendi, which is a modern day issue, has been perpetuated by the educated elite among them.
“Abudus and Andanis have lived and coexisted for over a century without many problems. Why is it happening in modern times?” he asked.
Isaac Owusu-Mensah, Senior Programmes Manager of KAS, noted that the foundation was committed to engaging the civil society to find lasting peace to conflicts in the country.
“We are building the capacity of institutions and other civil society organizations to help bring reforms that will ensure accelerated development of the country,” he added.
Mr. Donald Amuah, who chaired the workshop, urged the people to work towards peace since it would bring hope for the future.
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