Ewuraba - Professional African Women with Class and Style

Executive Director, The Ark Foundation, Ghana
Lecturer on Gender and Law, University of Ghana

Ms. Angela Dwamena-Aboagye is currently the Executive Director of the Ark Foundation in Ghana. The Ark Foundation, a non-governmental organization which she founded in 1994, seeks the "total liberation of women and children from all systems, laws, traditions and practices which violate their right to human dignity and development. Through the Ark Foundation, Ms. Dwamena-Aboagye set up the first shelter and crisis center for victims of family and gender-based violence in Ghana in 2000. In addition, the Ark Foundation has established a Legal and Counseling Center that provides support services for victims of sex-based and gender-based violence in different locations in the greater Accra and Eastern regions of Ghana. Since 2005, Ms. Aboagye has also been a lecturer on Gender and the Law at the University of Ghana in Legon. Previously, she was a prosecutor in the Attorney General's Department in Korfidua in the Eastern part of Ghana.

In addition to her advocacy work, Ms. Dwamena-Aboagye has been a vocal advocate for women's rights appearing on several radio programs and has been instrumental in the formation of a number of women's rights and advocacy networks in Ghana, including: Sisters' Keepers, Network for Women's Rights, Gender Violence Survivors' Support Network, and the National Coalition on Domestic Violence Legislation in Ghana. She has also established the Women's Law and Human Rights Institute, the first of its kind in Ghana, to provide learning and capacity-building opportunities for young women leaders and advocates.

LAWA Experience

{mosimage}For her graduate research, Ms. Aboagye completed a research paper entitled, “Polygamy, Equality and the Gender Debate, a comparative study of Ghana and the United States.” She completed her fellowship internship with Human Rights Watch, in their Women’s Rights Project, for which her final project explored whether the International Labour Conference (ILO) provided mechanisms for the support of human rights. Ms. Aboagye found that only organizations of workers, ratifying states, delegates to the ILO, and trade unions could initiate human rights actions under the ILO. She attended numerous conferences while she was a Fellow, such as the following:

• Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights under the Law conference on the theme: “Africa-America Women and the Law: Reclaiming our Communities.” (June 1995)

• National Black Women’s Health Project conference on the theme: “Empowered women challenging violence and AIDS globally,” where she presented a paper at a workshop panel discussion on the topic, “Violence against Women and Children in Africa.” (June 1995)

• National Council for International Health conference on the theme: “Violence as a Global Health Issue: Responding to the Crisis.” (June 1995)

• Constituency for Africa conference on the theme: “The Significance of GATT and Aid to African Countries.” (July 1995)

• United States Labor Department – International seminar on “Child Trafficking and Prostitution.” (September 1995)

• Institute of Global Research on the South ( American University) conference on the theme: “Implementation of the Beijing Plan of Action in the South.” (November 1995)

Additional Experience

Following LAWA, Angela returned to Ghana as a prosecutor in the Attorney General's Department in Korfidua in the Eastern part of the country.

Ms. Aboagye has appeared on several radio programs, including being interviewed about Tkrosi practices in 1997.

Ms. Aboagye is an alumna of the African Women's Leadership Institute of the Akina Mama wa Afrika Organization, based in the United Kingdom, from which she graduated in 1999.

In 1999, the Ark Foundation in Ghana, an advocacy-based human rights organization which she had founded in 1995 became fully operational. Through this organization, in 2000 Ms. Aboagye set up the first shelter/crisis center for victims of intra-family/gender based violence in Ghana. In addition, the Ark has established a Legal Center and a Counseling Center for providing sex-based and gender-based violence support services in different locations in the greater Accra and Eastern regions.

She has also established the Women’s Law and Human Rights Institute, the first of its kind in Ghana to provide learning and capacity-building opportunities for young women leaders and advocates in Ghana.

She has been instrumental in the formation of a number of women’s rights and advocacy networks in Ghana, including: Sisters’ Keepers, Network for Women’s Rights, Gender Violence Survivors’ Support Network, and the National Coalition on Domestic Violence Legislation in Ghana.

Since February 2005, Ms. Aboagye has lectured on Gender and the Law at the University of Ghana, Legon.

Affiliations

• Ghana Bar Association
• International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA-Ghana)
• African Women Lawyers Association (AWLA)
• Leadership and Advocacy for Women in Africa (Ghana) Alumnae Incorporated (LAWA – GH)
• Africa Regional Advisory Committee of the African Women’s Development Fund
• Ghana Integrity Initiative, a branch of Transparency International
• National Advisory Committee on Community Policing in Ghana

Publications

• Gender Violence and HIV/AIDS – a Manual for Service Providers (Ed. With others), 2003
• How the Perpetrators of Violence against Women and Children Escape – A Study of Escapes from the Time of the Violent Act, through Formal Complaint to Prosecution – With Dr. Adomako and Esi Awotwi (2005) AAWORD/ Cinquieme/Presses de l’Impremerie Saint Paul Publication
• African Perspectives on Gender Justice – Published by Africa Legal Aid Special Series 3 on African Perspectives on International Criminal Justice (2005)
• Polygamy, Equality, and the Gender Debate: A Comparative Study of Ghana and the United States Graduate Thesis for Masters in Law Degree (LL.M) at the Georgetown University Law Center, USA, April, 1995. Published in Voices of African Women: Women’s Rights in Ghana Uganda and Tanzania. Carolina Academic Press, 2005

Executive Director
The Ark Foundation, Ghana
P.O. Box AT 1230
Achimota-Accra
Ghana, West Africa
Work Phone: 233-21-511610
Work Fax: 233-21-511382
Mobile Phone: 233-24425-4280
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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Organizational website: www.arkfoundationgh.org

source:

http://www.wlppfp.org/lawa/Angela.htm

http://www.aaionline.org/Alumni/AlumProfiles.aspx?alum=angela_dwamena-aboagye

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/blogs/blog.php?blog=30&article=1000000090