By Philip Tengzu
Wa, (UW/R), Nov. 14, GNA – Transparency International (TI) Ghana has intensified its anti-corruption campaign with a capacity-building workshop for Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), public sector institutions and the media to enhance their collaborative efforts in the fight against corruption in Ghana.
The workshop, held in Wa, also sought to strengthen the participants’ understanding of gendered corruption and improve their capacity to detect, report, and advocate against all forms of corruption.
TI Ghana organised the workshop in partnership with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) under the “Participation, Accountability and Integrity for a Resilient Democracy (PAIReD)” project.
According to the TI Ghana, the workshop was informed by findings from the 2016 Afrobarometer survey, which showed strong public support for collective involvement in combating corruption.
TI Ghana and its partners believed that empowering CSOs and media actors would help expose and challenge corruption, including sextortion, while strengthening social accountability mechanisms.
Addressing the participants, Mrs Mary Awelana Addah, the Executive Director of TI Ghana, described Sextortion (sexual extortion) as a “silent but pervasive” violation that undermined the rights and dignity of victims.
She explained that corruption had direct human rights implications and said recent United Nations (UN) assessments had shown that bribery, abuse of power, and institutional failures could deny citizens access to justice, freedom, and opportunities.
“We see it (sextortion) as a critical impediment in the enjoyment of rights of those who suffer it and it is a corrupt offense.
It is critical that we understand the various barriers that affect both genders when it comes to the enjoyment of their rights”, she explained.
Mrs Addah explained that both women and men experienced sextortion, though women and girls were disproportionately affected but stressed that cultural norms often prevented victims from reporting such abuses.
She indicated that TI Ghana was, therefore, aimed at empowering the citizens to denounce, speak out and report corruption and create a society of fairness and justice.
Mr Prosper Kuorsoh, the Upper West Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), observed that the workshop offered journalists and media practitioners deeper understanding of the dynamics of gendered corruption.
He said that would enable them report corruption-related issues accurately saying, “If you don’t have full knowledge in a particular area, it becomes difficult for you to put together a proper story.”
Mr Sebastian Ziem, a Chief Investigator at the Upper West Regional Office of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), commended TI Ghana for involving the media in the workshop as they were essential partners in amplifying anti-corruption messages.
He noted that sexual extortion, particularly affected widows, young girls, and job seekers, but were often not reported due to fear and cultural silence.
The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) commissioned the PAIReD project, co-financed by the European Union (EU) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Christian Akorlie