Studies in Gender and Development in Africa

Help! I don’t love my husband” Advice Columns as Teaching Resource for Gender and Sexuality: Experiences from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana

M Prah

This paper is concerned with the use of teaching materials that are salient to students’ life experiences, hold their interest and facilitate transformatory learning and critical feminist thinking about gender and sexualities. Based on the experience of the use of Ghanaian advice columns as part of the curriculum in a gender and sexuality course, some of the challenges of teaching for transformation in the university classroom are presented and discussed. The paper shows that the students displayed a basic grasp of gender dimensions of the social construction of sex. They could easily relate to the issues raised in the letters published in the advice columns, which provided ample examples and spaces for exploration and discussion on gender and sexuality in the classroom. However, the issue of critical self-reflection, a crucial goal of transformatory learning, proved to have eluded the class. Creating evaluation methods that facilitate transformatory learning remains a challenge.

Streetism And Child Labour In The Wa Municipality Of Ghana A Gender Analysis of Drivers

C Kangsangbata

The challenge of child labor in Ghana, especially in Wa, has been given attention in recent times by various organizations within the country. An understudied dimension of these efforts at eradicating child labor is its gendered nature. This study was therefore conducted to unearth the gender dimension of the drivers of child labor. Specifically, it looked at the gender background of children engaged in street labor in relation to those who drive children to the streets, using the case of the Wa Municipality of the Upper West Region of Ghana. Participants were those guardians and street children who were available and willing to participate in the study. Feminized poverty and gender roles and expectations were found to be critical driver of streetism. Specifically, 75% (three quarters) of the children engaged in street labor in the Wa Municipality were females. Out of those found to drive children to the streets of Wa, 75% were females and 5% were males while 20% of children on the streets went there on their own. The domination of girl children in street labor was attributed to perceptions such as extension of domestic roles and likely performance and/or teenage pregnancy. The study therefore revealed that certain socio-cultural practices and beliefs work against the girl child and until some of these practices are unearthed and dealt with, no amount of poverty eradication and educational campaigns would set the victims free.

Gender, land tenure dynamics and livelihood: A Comparison of the Central and Volta Regions of Ghana Using Logistic Regression Analysis

GA Owusu

Binary Logistic Regression Analysis of secondary data were undertaken to compare the Volta and Central Regions of Ghana using gender as the key independent variable. The main hypothesis was that differences in the dynamics of land access, control and use in the study regions would be explained by gender inequities, manifested, in part, through the different systems of inheritance (matrilineal and patrilineal) which would further produce differences in livelihood, particularly income. Gender did not produce statistically significant effects, while region of residence was barely significant, only for control over land. All factors kept constant, the odds that respondents in the Volta Region had control over land were less likely than the odds for their Central Regional counterparts. Having access to land turned out to be the main determining variable for livelihood. The results could be explained by the finding that respondents used lineage land the least for their primary occupation. It points to the increasing alternative land tenure arrangements, which are not necessarily gender-dependent. This increasing overlapping land rights have implications for security of land ownership, use and control, and consequent repercussions for development, including food and income security.

Women’s Participation In Local Governance In Ghana The Case of the Nadowli District of the Upper West Region

C Gyimah

The issue of women’s participation in all spheres of life has become a major developmental concern world-wide. Many debates on the above issue have highlighted women’s marginalization in all aspects of social, economic and political life. The paper discusses the extent of women’s participation in the governance process at the local level in the Nadowli District of Ghana. The fieldwork was conducted on factors impinging on the level of women’s participation, impact of female representatives in the District Assembly and mechanisms for ensuring their active participation. A two-tier multi-stage sampling procedure involving simple random and purposive techniques was used to select area councils, communities, assemblypersons and community members as respondents. Key informant interviews with some heads of relevant decentralized agencies in the District were also carried out. The fieldwork revealed that, despite a marginal increase in female representation in the assembly, their numbers were still very low for the period 1988 to 2006. However, in spite of their low numerical strength; the study indicated that female representatives in the assembly have exhibited a positive impact on the development of their communities. The study also identified factors that relegate women to subordinate roles. Hence, measures have been suggested to enhance active involvement of women in the governance processes at the local level.

The Gendered Face Of HIV/AIDS: The Move Towards Policy Implementation in Ghana

JJ Dawuni

HIV/AIDS is more prevalent in Africa than in any other part of the world In Ghana, the first case of HIV/AIDS was report in 1986. Since then there have been efforts at various levels to combat its spread. This paper examines the institutional and structural frameworks for dealing with HIV/AIDS in Ghana. Using concept analysis, it examines the frameworks for their gender and development implications. It finds that the social group most adversely affected by HIV/AIDS in Ghana is women. This is attributed to social, economic, cultural, and institutional obstacles. While efforts at fighting the disease by the Government of Ghana through the Ghana Aids Commission, donor partners and civil society are noteworthy, it is also clear that the frameworks applied do not adequately address the gendered nature of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Consequently, it is argued that any meaningful effort toward combating the epidemic will involve the empowerment of women through changes in government policies and the socio-cultural systems and practices that limit women’s options and choices. The role of women in developing national processes will be felt where women’s needs are taken into consideration and addressed as one of the key to their contribution to national development.

Gender, Social Trust And Political Socialization In Ghanaian Education Implications for Shaping Political Beings in the Wa Municipality

AS Mansaray

The raison d’etre of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of families, religious leaders, teachers, political leaders, mass media and peer groups in the shaping boys and girls into political beings using the case of the Wa Municipality of Ghana. This was undertaken because the task of political socialization is very crucial for Ghana to consolidate its nascent democracy in the fast globalizing world. To determine the effectiveness of these agents of socialization, the degree of “social trust” of boys and girls have for these agents were examined on the assumption that the higher the trust for an agent, the more effective that agent would be, and vice versa. Self-administered questionnaires were utilized to generate the empirical data, which was analyzed using the chi-square and standardized residuals non-parametric statistical techniques. Findings reveal generally high distrust for agents and statistically significant gender asymmetries in “social trust” for the agents of socialization. There were also significant gender differences in levels of trust for the adolescent girls and boys who participated in the study. The boys showed more distrust (31%) than girls (29.3) while the girls showed more social trust (21%) than boys 18.7%). The differences were traced to differentiated socialization into gendered roles and their attendant responsibilities and expectations. The implication is that, due to distrust among the populace, the agents are ineffective in molding democratic personalities out of Ghanaian boys and girls. This is more true for political leaders and the media of all the agents! The Government is advised to primarily take political socialization seriously, encourage the agents to attract the necessary trust and be guided to understand, discharge their roles appropriately. Finally, the content and method of civic and political education in Ghana must be periodically revisited to reflect core Ghanaian values even in this era of globalization.