Accra, Ghana – The Sustainable Growth Objectives (SDGs), particularly SDG 5 on Gender equality and SDG 10 inequalities are critically interlinked social determinants which have the potential to reverse well being beneficial properties and even halt progress in the direction of common well being protection. The worldwide COVID-19 response stays a sober reminder to make gender equality an integral facet of nationwide well being preparedness and responses, to be able to deal with deep-rooted boundaries that reinforce and exacerbate well being inequities.

In Ghana, gender equality and fairness are vital commitments in nationwide well being insurance policies, together with many different multi-sectoral insurance policies. On the top of COVID-19, Ghana’s Strategic Response Plan emphasised the necessity to guarantee equitable entry to well being providers for all, who will want them. 

Consistent with the agenda to realize gender equality and empower girls and ladies, whereas lowering well being and social inequality to go away nobody behind, the World Well being Group (WHO) with the assist of the Authorities of Canada is addressing the capability and competency wants of stakeholders for extra built-in and powerful gender responsiveness in well being intervention design, implementation, and analysis. 

As a part of the undertaking, “Strengthening native and nationwide Major Well being Care (PHC) and Well being Techniques for the restoration and resilience of nations within the context of COVID-19” supported by the Authorities of Canada, WHO initiated as a primary step, a sequence of capability constructing coaching to reinforce the information, expertise and competencies of stakeholders on gender. The coaching sought to leverage evidence-informed approaches to combine gender in PHC and well being methods, undertake well being inequality monitoring and improvement of motion plans to advance gender, fairness, and rights to enhance important well being providers.   

“It’s typically stated, gender equality is everybody’s enterprise. To attain SDG 3, we have to be geared up to assist nationwide companions to make sure well being programmes and providers ship for everybody, particularly, girls, ladies and weak teams most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic” stated the WHO Consultant in Ghana, Dr Francis Kasolo.  

The initiative sought to enhance the flexibility of Ministries of Well being and their implementing companies, together with the well being workforce to handle wants and gaps to make sure the continuation of important providers which are equity-oriented and gender-responsive. 

Already, the intervention by WHO is yielding some constructive outcomes that may be constructed upon to maintain the collective duty of making certain insurance policies, programmes and interventions are equitable and conscious of individuals’s wants, pursuits, well being dangers and vulnerability. 

It has succeeded in enhancing the capability of over 130 contributors, from the WHO and authorities well being establishments. They comprised physicians and clinicians, programme and coverage planners, well being info in addition to monitoring and analysis officers on the nationwide, regional and district ranges. 

“Accountability is essential to closing well being inequalities,” stated Mrs Akosua Kwakye, the Programme Officer for Social Determinant of Well being at WHO Ghana. “That’s the reason we’re centered on helping companions to develop motion plans to advertise and advocate for gender mainstreaming into well being programmes”. 

For the well being workforce in Ghana, this coaching has been a essential studying alternative. They underscored the significance of sustained advocacy, engagement, and the ability of disaggregated well being information to assist discover context-specific options to gender-related variations in well being providers outcomes.

Reflecting on the workshop, Mrs Maame Esi Amekudzi, a Well being Planning Officer, from the Ghana Well being Service’s Coverage, Planning, Monitoring and Analysis Division (PPME) stated “I’ve learnt from the coaching that, improved insights from fairness evaluation require actions, collaboration and steady advocacy to handle gender-based well being inequalities”.

The capacity-building coaching additionally fostered clear dialogues which highlighted the necessity to nurture enabling environments and collaborations inside and out of doors the well being sector to advance fairness in well being.

“Whereas my information on evaluation of gender-relevant points has improved, I’m now aware of the necessity to create the suitable circumstances inside and out of doors well being establishments to allow us to ship healthcare for all” added Mrs Mavis Adobea Botchway, a Planning and Gender Desk Officer, on the Ministry of Well being.  

To totally leverage the continued capacity-building efforts, WHO is dedicated to mobilizing extra assets, and leveraging the ability of collaboration to advertise and assist actions to take away boundaries to well being service entry and utilization.