About Us

The Women’s Institute

Women account for half of the world’s population, yet every day, they face extreme hardships that affect their well-being and livelihoods. Apart from sharing their struggles over limited resources, most women face systematic discrimination and exclusion simply by virtue of being female. They lack access to decent work and face occupational segregation and gender wage gaps. They are too often denied access to basic education and health care. They suffer violence and discrimination and are under-represented in political and economic decision-making processes.

For a country to achieve effective and sustainable development, these issues must be addressed; women empowerment and equality must be at the forefront of the nation’s agenda. No society can develop sustainably without increasing and transforming the distribution of opportunities, resources, and choices for women so that they have equal power to shape their own lives and contribute to their communities.

In this new age, women and girls are positioned to be key drivers of progress and growth but they need to be empowered through equal rights and equal opportunities. They need to be prepared for a 21st-century economy through connection to finance, digital literacy, science, technology, engineering, agriculture and mathematics. And they need to be valued as leaders, peace-builders, and breadwinners in their communities and societies.

Understanding that investing in equity and empowerment for women is essential to social change and economic prosperity is why The Women’s Institute has been created.

An initiative founded by lawyer Sandra Ankobiah, The Women’s Institute is a dynamic and strong campaigner for women and girls, providing them with a powerful voice at the national, regional and local levels. Grounded in the vision of equality and empowerment enshrined in the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, The Women’s Institute, among other issues, work for the:

• Elimination of discrimination against women and girls;
• Empowerment of women; and
• Achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and governance.

With its network of partners, sponsors and volunteers, The Women’s Institute encourages the development of women through participatory, culturally-sensitive and rights-based programs as well as serve as a platform for learning and exploring issues from human rights and violence against women to body image, self-esteem and developing leadership skills. Effective implementation of this initiative will advance the material interests of communities in Ghana, contributing to economic growth, poverty reduction, human development and security, thereby helping to make Ghana stronger, safer and more prosperous.