The Role of Elite Women in the Yendi Municipality Of Ghana. The Case of Selected Women Leaders

Abstract

The role of women in politics and decision-making is one of the current blazing governance issues because of the perceived and acknowledged potential and contribution of women to governance and national development processes. Effective and meaningful participation is a process of empowerment that enhances the self-worth of individuals and groups. This study examines the state of women leadership, their contributions, challenges, and how they are represented and perceived in terms of their roles in the Yendi Municipality of Northern Ghana. This was done by using two elite women namely; female Chiefs (Gundo Na & Kpatu-Ya Na) and one Magajiaa as case studies. The duties of Hajias and wives of chiefs were investigated as well. The study purposefully sampled and interviewed 30 respondents to solicit for data in the field to achieve this kind of purpose. Qualitative research designs and techniques were employed during the study. Primary and secondary data were collected and analyzed qualitatively. The study reveals that most recent scholarly works in the study area highlight the achievements and challenges of women in modern political systems, while little or nothing is documented on the roles and challenges of other equally important elite women who are not necessarily active in the modern political structures, but contribute greatly in diverse ways towards the development of their communities. It was shared that apart from the female chiefs (Paunabas), whose roles and position are revered by majority of the people in Yendi, the same could not be said about other elite women such as the female Tindanas and Hajias. They are less recognized and valued because of some endemic sociocultural and religious perceptions about the position of women in public life. The study revealed that elite women in Yendi of Northern Ghana are constrained by inadequate finance, low levels of education, sociocultural and religious beliefs, lack of confidence, and intimidation. Consequently, the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), government, political parties, and civil society organizations do organize sensitization and training programmes to empower some elite women into governance and decision-making processes in the Yendi Municipality. Despite the social and structural challenges identified in the above, the study documented the following during the case studies as some of the duties performed by women leaders in the Yendi Municipality; serving as mouthpiece for women, settlement of marital disputes, mobilizing of women for religious, community, and political party work, serving as role models for young girls, and lobbying for loans and technical support from banks and NGOs respectively. In spite of these efforts, there are only few elite women who are found on key decision-making bodies in the Yendi Municipality. Due to the little number of elite women on major decision-making bodies, their impacts and influences are also limited, making it difficult to deconstruct the strong patriarchal systems and sociocultural norms which are used to marginalize women in most aspects of their lives.