The neglect of boys’ emotional development has significantly contributed to toxic masculinity and the growing incidence of violence later in life, the Advocacy Lead of Junior Shapers Africa, Jeremiah Komla Mawunyo, has said.
According to him, that from an early age many boys are socialised to suppress their emotions and are discouraged from expressing fear, sadness or vulnerability, often being told that “boys do not cry”.
Mr Mawunyo made the remarks at the National Men’s Conference on Positive Masculinity, organised by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, on Friday in Accra as part of efforts to end violence against women and girls and promote gender equality.
Mr Mawunyo argued that for decades, national and global conversations on gender equality had largely focused on empowering women and girls, often to the neglect of the boy child.
He said boys were frequently socialised to suppress their emotions, endure hardship in silence and equate masculinity with dominance and aggression.
“Almost every boy has been told at least once that boys do not cry. In forcing boys to suppress their emotions, we push them towards unhealthy coping mechanisms such as substance abuse, aggression and sexism, which later manifest as violence,” he said.
Citing the 2022 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey, Mr Mawunyo noted that about 40 per cent of women aged 15 to 49 had experienced some form of sexual violence, adding that behind many of these cases were men who had grown up without emotional support, positive role models or healthy definitions of masculinity.
He called for intentional investment in boys through mentorship, education and family support systems, stressing that positive masculinity must begin at home, in schools and within communities.
On her part, the Minister of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa MomoLartey, said men were not only part of the gender equality conversation but were essential to achieving sustainable solutions to sexual and gender-based violence.
“To eliminate sexual and gender-based violence, we must understand the unique pressures, expectations and vulnerabilities faced by men and boys, while strengthening their role as allies in achieving gender equality,” she said.
Dr Lartey explained that while data and interventions had historically focused on women and girls as victims of abuse, men and boys also required safe spaces, empowerment and emotional support.
She stressed that positive masculinity was not about weakening men, but about enabling them to lead with empathy, responsibility and respect.
Dr Lartey announced plans to scale up mentorship programmes for boys, expand community campaigns on healthy masculinity and invest in the emotional and psychological wellbeing of men and boys.
Mr Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah speaking on behalf of the Chief of Staff, Mr Julius Debrah said violence against women and girls weakened the moral and social fabric of the nation and called on men to become champions of equity and non-violence.
Mr Debrah, however, urged faith-based institutions, traditional leaders and families to challenge harmful norms and actively mentor boys into compassionate, confident and responsible men and to ensure that commitments made translate into concrete action across the country.
BY CECILIA YADA LAGBA
