Vice President Professor Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has reaffirmed Ghana’s commitment to promoting the political participation and leadership of women and young people across West Africa.

She made this known while addressing a High-Level Regional Consultation on inclusive governance in the sub-region.

According to her, although many West African countries have adopted strong policy frameworks and regional commitments, the representation of women and youth in decision-making spaces remains far too low.

The Vice President said Ghana is taking deliberate steps to address the imbalance through ongoing governance reforms.

She highlighted the operationalisation of the Affirmative Action Act as a key move to strengthen women’s representation in public leadership.

She noted that under the leadership of President John Mahama, promoting gender equity continues to be treated as a national priority and an essential part of democratic governance.

Vice President Opoku-Agyemang also drew attention to efforts to deepen youth participation in national development.

She said initiatives led by the Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment and the National Youth Authority are focused on empowering young people to actively contribute to policy-making and governance.

She stressed that inclusive leadership is critical to democratic resilience and the effectiveness of public institutions.

According to her, governance systems perform best when they reflect the diversity of the people they serve.

The Vice President added that Ghana remains open to collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States and other regional partners to share knowledge, build capacity, and accelerate progress towards inclusive governance across the sub-region.