The Socio-CuItural Dimensions of Gender: Women's Access to and Control over Productive Assets in South Wollo

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Date

2010-07

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Addis Ababauniversity

Abstract

This research is carried out in Argoba Woreda of South Wollo Administrative Zone, Amhara National Regional State. The research is carried out with the aim of scrutinizing the major sociocultural stumbling blocks altering women's access to and control over productive assets impact. The Researcher, in an effort of undertaking this research employs qualitative orientation through basic qualitative survey techniques. Focus group discussion, individual interview, and participatory observation used as basic data gathering tools accompanied by a guide checklist for primary data and publi shed and unpublished documents for secondary information. Case stories are also the central part of this work captured through audio recorder. Information acquired through the above mentioned tools is analyzed through mainly textual formats and graphic and tabular ways to correlate various concepts vis-a-vis simple statistical procedure like percentage, mean and median. The findings of the study shows that women's access to and control over productive assets is seriously constrained by various social, cultural, economic, political, psychological and ideological versions of analogy. Customary laws and patrilineal form of inheritance across families accompanied by lack of an enabling political framework to implement proclamations on the statutory law that allow women to have access to and control over productive assets are the major stumbling blocks. Lack of access to financial services and rural credit is also another impediment sidetracking women from engaging in productive income generating activities. The study recommends few points as a way forward to tackling the predicaments dabbed on women. The major recommendations include; launching of rural credit schemes accessible to women, actions should have to be taken to implement the proclamation that allowed spousal joint registration of properties, building women's awareness about statutory laws and the woreda should take action to modify social and cultural attitudes and practices that disadvantage women, their has to be a mechanism of linking the customary and the statutory laws for a symbiotic mode of action, and research should have to be undertaken by multi-disciplinary teams at a regular basis for a better understanding of women's situation and the gender aspect in general

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Control over Productive Assets in South Wollo

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