Theodora Aidoo

Theodora Aidoo, broadcast journalist and Head, News Department of Taabea Television, one of Ghana’s television station, decided to take the learning from the Report Women! Female Reporters’ Leadership Programme (FRLP) to female media students in Ghana. The objective is to instil self-worth in aspiring female journalists and to help them become more informed, innovative, and well poised for newsroom opportunities, through a capacity building forum, on which she engaged her colleagues as resource persons, aside from involving the management of the media schools. Theodora has influenced a lot of processes in her organisation, apart from the impact she is making with the media students. One of such is the employment selection process, which used to be in favour of men; but now, that narrative has changed. Another big one is the review of her organisation’s newsroom policy, which has now accommodated two female staff (including herself) in managerial positions. She is excited about the outcome and hopes to continue to carry out regular assessment of the project, together with reinforcing learning through online platforms.

Theodora’s story “Kayayei by Day, Prostitute by Night” revealed the menace of child prostitution in Ghana, particularly Kumasi, the capital of Ashanti region; this stemmed from rural-urban migration, poverty and unemployment. Girl-child prostitution, gender gap in employment, rural unemployment, and cultural practices that promote gender inequality are some gender related issues that Theodora highlighted in her story. Kayayei is a Ghanaian term for head porter or bearer. Theodora’s story has attracted a number of attentions and is likely to steer further discussions around curbing the menace of child prostitution.