Ananilea Nkya reports
Researchers on women's issues from African countries recently gathered in Nigeria and discussed among other things the impact of food, energy and debt crises on women in the region.
The meeting hosted by Women's Research and Documentation Centre WORDOC, Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan under the auspices of the Third World Organization known as Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era, DAWN also discussed women and education and Women's Movement and Visons in Africa.
The historical session noted that a large number of women in Africa are poor, illiterate and unemployed and are among those hardest hit by the impact of food, energy and debt crises.
Women's role in African agriculture is crucial. They are the prime labour force for smallholdings in the continent. As a general rule, they hoe, weed, harvest, store, process and market most of the food produced. They take care of chickens and in some cases, small animals. Their work in agriculture production increases in proportion to the amount of male out migration in their region.
"In case food is not available, women carry the young ones and beg for food" said Ethiopia researcher, ZLenebework Bissrat. Again, a Sierra Leone researcher, Aghatha Agwu Jones said women in most African countries are forced to go to the market everyday because it is too expensive to store bulk food in refrigerators as both the storage facility and electricity are very expensive. She said due to lack of storage facilities there is a lot of food wastage in the homes in African countries.
Other researchers who wrote papers on food and energy crises in relation to women in Africa were Neuma Ngur, Professor Olufunke Egunjobi, Nkoli Ezumah, Okechukuu Okereke, Dr. Chris Igodan, Dr. Di-Domenico and Dr. Thomas Emeagwali and Lasisis all from Nigeria and the following with their countries in brackets - Isabella Johnson (Sierra Leone), Dr. Florence Dovlo (Ghana) and Christine Kisamba-Mugewa (Uganda).
The researchers recommended that there is a need for training African women in agriculture, modern packing, preserving and storing of food. They also said the African governments should put more emphasis on food production and ensure that traditional foods were not exported until domestic needs were satisfied.
On the energy crisis the women researchers urged African countries to. find alternative sources of energy in order to reduce dependency on fuel, wood and charcoal, the shortage of which creates a burden on women.
On the debt crisis the women meeting showed their dissatisfaction on the way loans were managed by most African governments, showing doubt that in some cases loans were mismanaged and the consequences of it were mostly felt by women. However, in order to reduce the debt crisis they called upon their governments to speak in one voice on debt conditionalities offered by international monetary organizations.
The meeting also discussed the questions of women's education and the participants noted that because women do not participate equitably in the decision making bodies nor in the economic sphere, they therefore receive the inferior education which limits their upward mobility.
They suggested that the major task ahead is for women to be involved in the decision making process so that they can change the systems so that the status of women in society can be redefined.
A researcher, Gaone Masire, who wrote a paper on "access" to education and advancement of women's employment in Botswana, said we want to see progressive women who are equally compensated because of their mental capability rather than what their sex is.
On women's movements and vision, a researcher Fatma Aloo, who is also TAMWA's chairperson wrote an interesting paper on Women and Popular Media in Tanzania and emphasised the need for African countries to use forms like dances, ngomas because they are the alternative media African women have had and used for their own empowerment as this strategy has proved fruitful in Tanzania.
Two researchers, one from Uganda, Joyce Gunura, and another from Kenya, Professor Lucia Omondi, presented their papers on violence on women. They noted that all violence towards women is a result of tradition, economy and ignorance. Tradition shapes women to be humble, obedient and tolerant to any situation imposed on them especially by men.
Source: Sauti Ya Sili December 1988 Published by Tanzania Media Women's Association (TAMWA) P.O. Box 6143 Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania