Scores of women in the Upper East region have taken to the streets, saying they have had enough of shouldering unpaid household jobs alone and clamouring for their husbands to share the domestic burdens with them.

The women took their grief to government, accompanied by a communiqué and a bunch of placards inscribed with words that boldly mirrored the untold pains they said they could not bear anymore in silence.

“Redistribute unpaid care work; men, let us shares roles,” demanded a placard held by a beaded hand in a crowded street in the Nabdam District, where the open protest took place. “Provide childcare centres to reduce unpaid care work,” one poster petitioned. And another penciled piece of plywood, spotted seesawing above a huge cluster of heads, screamed: “Let us recognise rural women’s efforts!”

That rare road march, autographed by ActionAid Ghana, was organised by the Botitaba Nahira Taaba Development Union (BONATADU) in commemoration of the International Rural Women’s Day with the theme: “Recognising Unpaid Care Work: The Role of Rural Women Farmers in Food Security.”

Hundreds of rural women turned up for the road march against unpaid care work

For the women who took part in the protest walk, the unpaid care work- which they said included fetching water, collecting firewood, cooking, cleaning and caring for children as well as the sick and the elderly among other activities- is time-consuming, with widows and single mothers said to be more affected in communities where poverty has lived with generations and women whose survival instincts are tilting towards farming are denied access to lands that can deliver good harvests.

“Amidst all the daily challenges that rural women go through at both household and community level to ensure that there is enough food in the house to eat as well as the welfare of the family is taken care of, their efforts are not recognised or appreciated,” stated the communiqué, which was presented to the assembly by the leader of smallholder rural women farmers in the district, Margaret Baabon.

“We are calling upon the community, especially the male counterparts in the households, to recognise, redistribute and reduce the unpaid care work by supporting the women with household work. We are calling upon the traditional authorities- chiefs and landowners- to enable women secure fertile land for farming to ensure increased food production and food security in the households,” the statement stressed.

If we deserve no gain, we deserve no pain also- protesters

The route march finished with a durbar at Pelungu, a busy suburb of the district, where the women also registered a strong dislike for the “painful” loss of productive hours often suffered as they struggled to meet the demands of household engagements that brought them no direct financial gains.

In their communiqué, they pressed government for the establishment of childcare centres and the provision of more boreholes among other amenities to help reduce the burden and the time loss associated with what they described as their “society-imposed” household roles.