Running mate to the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang has pledged that the new NDC government will pass the Affirmative Action Bill.

Commemorating the 2020 International Day of the Girl Child, she explained in a statement that the bill, when passed into law, will deal with issues that impede the progress of young girls in the country.

She noted that it is time for equal opportunities to be given to both genders and for that to be materialised, it would require the efforts of all Ghanaians.

“We must reflect on the promise of equal opportunity at all levels of education for Ghanaian girls, and how obstacles like period poverty deny them that. We must acknowledge the pervasive risks of sexual and physical violence that Ghanaian girls face at school, in their communities, and even in their own homes.

“We must acknowledge how outmoded social norms limit options for young girls, how harmful cultural practices protect sexual predators at the expense of the victims, and how our justice system often fails girls too,” she said.

The former Education Minister further promised that reforms will be introduced to confront sexual harassment issues head on in schools, workplaces amongst others.

“These are not political promises, but rather moral obligations. Let us not fall short in these commitments to Ghanaian girls, as that is itself a measure of our national character,” she added.

Mrs Opoku-Agyemang also acknowledged the hardship, some girls have to endure due to the Covid-19 pandemic, adding that, the country must “not fail them” but support them whatever means necessary to resuscitate them.