WOMEN IN AFRICA'S DEVELOPMENT

                  WOMEN IN AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT

 

         In Africa, women represent 51 per cent of the population and can be found in all professions and branches of activity. Although their contributions may not be officially recognized, it is undeniable that their role is critical to the economic development of their respective countries.

Between 60 and 80 per cent of all agricultural labour in Africa is undertaken by women, who are found all along the food chain. The Africa woman sows, reaps, transports, processes and sells the food. At least 50 per cent of food production is provided by women. Women start working from childhood and contribute until the day when they are too tired to do so. In the rural areas women work even when they are pregnant, up until the time of birth, because it is they who must satisfy the basic needs of their families.

            Women are the pillars of Africa’s economic development. In the rural areas there is virtually no development, if women do not participate fully for the simple reason that they are the ones who produce the food crops. They also play a very important role in the production of cash crops in some countries. In the villages, in addition to the fact that they cultivate the land, African women also participate in community life. They are responsible for domestic work – care of the house and the family.- as well as production of domestic articles – mats, baskets, cooking utensils -  and the preparation of beverages which are secondary source of revenue  in rural area.

In pastoral area of the Sahel, women have their own herds of cattle which must be manage and cared for, and they must also process and sell the dairy goods. In these societies farming was traditionally entrusted to men, but these roles have been disrupted in most of the Sahelian zone due to the drought and the resulting male migration. This has added to women’s labour burden.

Although fishing has never been considered an important activity for women, women do play substantial roles in some fishing communities in the processing, preservation, and sale of the fish. In the height of the fishing seasons, women sometimes work up to 16 hours a day.

Women are also well represented in production and trading of traditional goods – baskets, dyeing and weaving and pottery as well as in the marketing of modern goods – shoes, candy, perfumes, canned goods, and cooked foods. It is imperative therefore those Africa countries correctly evaluate women’s efforts in the sphere of small-scale trading in order to better grasp the impact of this sector on economic development.

Women are poorly represented in the service, particularly in the public sector, apart from health and education where specialized personnel represent more than half the labour force. While more and more women have access to higher position in the upper echelons of administration and often make valuable contributions to the conception and planning of projects, they remain a minority because of limited access to training. Participation of women in the private sector is practically nonexistence and certain businesses visibly discriminate against women despite the existing legislation. Women who work in private enterprises are mainly secretaries, saleswomen, or office workers.

Even though they are not often consider as full-time workers, it should be mentioned here that domestic workers make important contributions to economic development as far as their work free qualifies women from their domestic responsibilities.    

In many countries, especially in Anglophone Africa, women have played and continue to play a very important role in the development and growth of small and medium-size cooperative enterprises which represent an important step in a country’s industrialization process. In some cases it is thanks to these women that their countries are represented in regional or world markets.

Industrialization has long been considered a criterion for development; therefore women organizations must concentrate their efforts in this area. Today the role of women in the industrial sector and the economic value of their contributions to industrial development are very limited. The reason for this is primarily that the industries in Africa countries are characterized by poor technology, low productivity, and a high degree of labour insensitivity.

These industries - in particular the textile, confectionery, and food processing industries – have a common denominator; low wages and poor working conditions. These three industrial sectors were the first to have been created in Africa, and although many women are employed in them, it is at the lowest levels. Irrespective of the sector and the type of industry, women’s participation is at the lowest level of professional competence. Indeed, very few Africa women possess even the minimum technical knowledge, which makes their involvement in the application of the most advanced technology virtually impossible.

In some Africa countries women are beginning to make presence felt in industry as independent entrepreneurs, leading and directing manufacturing and service activities. In this regard one can cite the example of Ghana, but these are isolated cases, not significant enough to create the environment capable of encouraging other women or of creating new legislation which would help them.

Women can play a meaningful role in industry if the many psychological, economic, and material barriers disappear or are blunted. In the immediate future, employing more women and improving their position in industry can without a doubt play an important part in the process of industrialization in a number of Africa countries. It is therefore urgent to take effective measures which will enable women to strengthen their participation in the various industrial sectors that will promote economic development.

For Africa countries, science and technology constitute the final hurdle in controlling their own development. Biology, microelectronics, and new forms of energy are most important in this area.

It is primarily women who are responsible for the health of the community. At a point in time when Africa societies are trying to expand their scientific knowledge, it is natural that women should be in the forefront of research in modern curative science. The lack of women in biological research is therefore deplorable. Women seem relegated more to the level of ‘observers’, irrespective of their abilities.

The percentage of women doctors, dentists, and pharmacists is increasing slowly and regularly, but the level of female participation in these professions is directly a result of government policies. In Gabon for example, President Omar Bongo supports giving women ‘all the means to acquire skills, to educate their children, to improve their households’ as well as ‘a fair place in the working world and in political life.’

In the field of microelectronics, women have been assured of opening as computer operators and programmers, earning relatedly substantial salaries. But at higher levels prospects for women are dim. In addition, the service and unskilled sectors in which Africa women are the majority will suffer most by the changes brought about by information technology, while their position in the higher echelons will continue to be insignificant.

There is little incentive for African women to become involved in advanced technology because of the absence of research facilities in their countries. Where there are a few individuals who have research a sufficiently high level of training – as is the case in Gabon - these women are confined to jobs as technicians, making forms of technology.

QUESTIONS FROM THE PASSAGE

1.     Identify the three divisions in the passage and give a subtitle to each one.

2.     Make an outline of more than one page of foolscap, using topic outline. Write two supporting ideals of each main point in the passage.   

By

Eguriase S. M. Okaka