A lawyer and gender activist has said one of the effective ways of dealing with the high occurrence of domestic violence is to educate women to be observant of behaviours and attitudes in their relationships.

Dr Angela Dwamena-Aboagye said young ladies should look out for situations that may create conducive atmospheres for abuse.

The Executive Director of the Ark Foundation believes that pre-relationship education that throws light on how to watch out for the signs of abuse or battery will go a long way.

According to her, the appropriate institutions must teach women “what to look out for before they clinch that deal (marriage)”

She told the host of Joy FM's Home Affairs, Edem Knight-Tay that "for example, relationships in which a boyfriend may show signs of excessive jealousy, controlling behaviour and constant patrolling, maybe a red flag."

Dr Dwamena–Aboagye who was speaking on the topic ‘Empowering the abused woman’ said despite the gloom picture painted by the surge in such cases of domestic battery, there is hope on the horizon.

Apart from pre-relationship education, she also highlighted the importance of publicising “whatever services there are in this country that is supposed to help with working on the abusive situation, helping the survivor, and ensuring accountability on the part of the perpetrator”.

She said there is the need to make widely known, the structures, institutions and services available to provide help to any persons who may find themselves in such dire situations.

Dr Dwamena-Aboagye who has had several years of experience with the Ark Foundation, a non-profit organisation that provides support for abused women, also revealed that it is important to teach women also who may be in the thick of an abusive situation, some survival strategies to protect them temporarily.

“When you are in there, you must know how to detect that a battering is coming, an abuse is coming”, she said.

She believes that such women must be taught what to do in such situations.