Appraisal of rural women participation in household and community decision making in Ijebu east local government area of Ogun State

Abstract

The aim of the study was to identify and appraise the participation of women in household and community decision-making and its implications for their empowerment. Test samples were selected through a multi–stage random sampling technique. A total of ninety respondents were chosen from the five sampled wards, and ten communities from the study area. Data were collected through a structured interview schedule and analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics. The results show that, about 30% of the respondents were between the ages of (31-40) years. Majority (77.7%) was married and half of them (54.4%) had no formal education. The findings also reveals that, (78.9%) of the women take active part in making decisions at their various households while (76.67%) take part in community decision-making. The respondents were grouped into three, based on their participatory scores as; low (33.3%), average (61.1%) and high (5.6%). Chi Square analyses indicated that, marital status (χ2 = 2.54, p < 0.05) and educational level (χ2 = 4. 32, p < 0.05) were significantly related to the rural women\'s participation in community decision-making, while the coefficient of determination showed that, income (r=0.68, p < 0.05) was significantly related to the rural women\'s participation in community decision-making. It is recommended that, rural women should be empowered through education and training. They should also be allowed to participate in vocational training programmes that will increase their income level.

Keywords: Appraisal, rural women, participation, household, community and decision-making.

Bowen Journal of Agriculture Vol. 5 (1&2) 2008: pp. 32-40