Ivy Fofie, (35), from Ghana, is pursuing a doctorate in communications and media studies with a graduate certificate in women’s gender and sexuality studies at the University of Oregon. Ivy’s important dissertation examines the history of women working in local language media, to uncover the problems women face when voicing concerns of injustices to the media, for resolution. She also examines program content for gender progressive discourses.
Ivy works to raise awareness through the media to provide a haven for women subjected to rape and domestic abuse to provide financial assistance and vocational training, and establish housing and education for abandoned women and children whose conditions are unresolved due to indifference and an antiquated patriarchal system.
Ivy’s focused and non-threatening demeanor has gained her access to stakeholders to fund projects for women in media: with others, she acquired a small grant from the US Embassy to investigate the status of women in Ghanaian newsrooms. Her greatest personal achievement is being a volunteer at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, as a local language panelist, communicating in her language of Guan, on a program broadcasting to women and girls in rural villages offering support, advice, and mentorship.
She is the editor-in-chief for FemInStyle Africa, a women’s organization that publishes a written magazine to highlight inequalities against women. Ivy’s plan for the future is to partner with two local media-focused NGOs – the Alliance for Women in Media Africa (AWMA) and FemInStyle – to assist in providing media and vocational training as well as financial help to underprivileged women and children.
