Abla Dzifa Gomashie, a member of parliament representing Ketu South, has expressed her disappointment with the unfair and stereotyped treatment that menopausal women face in our culture.
She said that although menopause is a natural phase of a woman’s development, it is stigmatised in the same way that menstruation is.
The Ketu South lawmaker raised the issue of how menopause is handled in our culture during a parliamentary debate.
She went on to express her disappointment that menopause is not given the same level of attention as it is for women, despite the fact that some males go through it as well.
“Mr. Speaker, much of the stigma surrounding menopause is associated with sexism. As mentioned before, women in this group are more at risk of abuse and unfair societal stigmatisation. Therefore, the absence of menstruation may be associated with other indicators of ill health. For example, postmenopausal vaginal bleeding is seen as a sign of witchcraft in several tribes in Africa, causing many women to delay treatment for ovarian, cervical, or endometrial cancer.
“Especially because of the absence of sufficient information on this natural occurrence of women, women are tagged and labelled with descriptions that are heartbreaking and penalties that are meted out to them. It’s important to note, Mr. Speaker, that some men also experience the biochemical changes associated with what is commonly called “male menopause” (or “andropause” in medical parlance). According to an article by Parminder Singh (2013) in the Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism titled “Andropause: Current Concepts,” andropause is a syndrome characterised by low testosterone levels and a decline in sexual satisfaction or a decline in a sense of general well-being in older men.
What’s striking about this, Mr. Speaker, is that men seldom face the sort of ridicule and shame that women going through menopause do. Not by the standards by which women are measured. In addition, because the involved hormones in males only influence a subset of processes, the process does not have the same debilitating effect on men. Contrarily, “oestrogen, the implicated hormone, contributes to the proper function of an unparalleled number of organs, hormones, and physiological processes in women, all of which are affected during the menopause transition,” she stated.
In addition to everything else that comes with menopause, Dzifa Gomashie, a former Deputy Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts, said that society does not make the required arrangements to help such women.
The lawmaker used herself as an example to argue that being menopausal does not equate to idleness or the inability to perform.
“Mr. Speaker, menopausal women not only face public ridicule and shame, but also face daily, private blame and humiliation. Some women’s worries are dismissed as the product of a menopausal woman, to whom no serious consideration should be given. Therefore, society does not adequately provide for women at this time of transition. Mr. Speaker, much like menstruation, menopause has been used as a punchline in jokes and as an instrument of sexism and sexism against women.
“Mr Speaker, in my own experience, I had already entered menopause when the visionary President John Dramani Mahama selected, vetted, and swore me in as Deputy Minister for Tourism, Culture, and Creative Arts. In the same age group, Mr. Speaker, I chose my nomination papers for the Ketu South Constituency primary and narrowly won the 2019 election by a margin of 31 votes. In 2023, I triumphed by a margin of 632 votes over my nearest rival.
Being a woman in the menopause zone’ hasn’t impeded my capacity to serve as a member of parliament, I can assure you of that. Women experiencing menopause, according to studies and books on the subject, have a diminished quality of life. Therefore, while menopause is not a disease, special attention can be given to those whose transition is associated with particularly unpleasant side effects, just as care is provided for those with malaria, headaches, sinus infections, etc., or those going through pregnancy and lactation. She said, “Mr. Speaker, I am proof that women going through menopause can and should be encouraged to contribute fully to society.”
Dzifa Gomashie, a member of parliament representing Ketu South, has also urged the elimination of prejudice towards menopause.
