Women’s Innovation for Sustainable Enterprises (WISE) Project
Duration 2023
Background
In Ghana, unpaid care work remains a significant burden disproportionately carried by women, particularly in rural communities. This unequal distribution of domestic responsibilities limits women’s economic opportunities, reduces their participation in household and community decision-making, and contributes to emotional exhaustion and persistent poverty. Recognizing this systemic challenge, Savana Signatures with support from Plan Internal Ghana and Global Affairs Canada, implemented the WISE project in 2023 targeting 15 rural communities in the Kumbungu District of the Northern Region. The program aimed to address gender inequalities by promoting awareness and equitable sharing of unpaid care work among all family members.
Strategy
Savana Signatures implemented a comprehensive community engagement approach to transform attitudes and behaviors regarding unpaid care work:
- Community Awareness Campaigns
- Conducted targeted outreach to highlight the hidden burdens of unpaid care work
- Educated communities on the economic and social impacts of unequal distribution
- Gender Norms Transformation
- Advocated for equal sharing of domestic responsibilities between men and women
- Promoted balanced care work distribution among boys and girls from childhood
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Reached 1,495 community members through direct engagement
- Focused on changing perceptions about traditional gender roles in care work
Key Highlights
- Directly engaged 1,495 individuals across 15 rural communities
- Successfully highlighted the economic and social consequences of unequal care work distribution
- Initiated important conversations about redistributing domestic responsibilities
- Advanced the narrative of shared responsibility between men and women, boys and girls
- Laid groundwork for improving women’s economic participation by reducing care burdens
The initiative marks an important step in addressing systemic gender inequalities in rural Ghana, with potential for significant long-term impacts on women’s economic empowerment and community development.