For years, Civil Society Organizations across Ghana were busy knocking on every door and launching various campaigns—urging successive governments to pass the Affirmative Action Bill into law.

After over a decade of campaigns and intense lobbying, Parliament, on July 30th, 2024, passed the Affirmative Action (Gender Equality) Act 2024. The law in its current form makes it compulsory to have women either elected or appointed to major decision-making organs of public life.

Affirmative Action refers to government-backed policies designed to address historical inequalities and improve opportunities for marginalized groups, particularly women.

The overarching goal of such policies is to create opportunities for these groups to participate more fully and equitably in various sectors, ensuring their active involvement in public life.

At the December 2024 polls, Ghanaians cemented their desire to have women in leadership by electing the first female Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang.

So, it beats my imagination, disappointing and frankly baffling, that Daily Graphic chose to frame the appointment of Dr.Naomi Kwetey as MD of Consolidated Bank of Ghana (CBG) as simply that of “the wife of the NDC General Secretary” in their headline; “Meet Naomi Wolali Kwetey, wife of NDC General Secretary Fifi Kwetey who has just been nominated as acting MD of Consolidated Bank of Ghana”.

In a statement announcing her appointment, CBG said, “Dr. Naomi Wolali Kwetey brings 30 years of extensive experience in the financial sector, covering corporate relationship management, treasury, credit administration, branch banking marketing, and operational risk management.”

The statement added that she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Ghana, a Master of Business Administration in International Banking and Finance from the Birmingham Business School, and a Doctorate in Business Administration and Management from the Noble International Business School (NIBS).

With this number of years of experience and academic qualifications under her belt, Graphic Communications Group Ltd, (publishers of the Daily Graphic), a state-owned enterprise still chose to portray her in that manner, as if Dr. Naomi Wolali Kwetey only got her appointment because she is married to the General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

For me, I think that the headline by Daily Graphic undermines a qualified woman’s career achievements by presenting her identity through the lens of her husband’s political role and gravely contradicts the spirit of the Affirmative Action Act, which aims to promote merit-based recognition of women.

And I must add that it also sends the wrong signal to young women, that no matter how far they rise, their success may still be linked to the men in their lives.

I must regrettably also say that it exposes a lack of editorial responsibility in how gender-sensitive reporting is handled, especially by a publicly funded institution like the Daily Graphic.

Dr. Naomi Wolali Kwetey’s appointment should have celebrated competence, experience, and the breaking of barriers, not an opportunity for reductive headlines like the one in the Daily Graphic.

But that only says one thing—that CSOs still have a lot of work to do.

……. that the Affirmative Action law is here with us is not enough for CSOs to go to sleep. A lot more work needs to be done.

More education is the ONLY WAY OUT.