Household decision making status of women in Dabat district, North West Ethiopia, 2009 Gc

Abstract

Background: Though gender inequality is often cite as a barrier to improving maternal overall condition in developing countries, little attention has been given in understanding how a woman's position within their household may affect the living situation of them. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess household decision making status of women in Dabat destrict. Methods: A community based cross sectional study was conducted in April 2009 in Dabat, North West Ethiopia .The study was conducted in Dabat Rural Health Project (DRHP). A total of 948 currently married women were include in the study. Semi-structured questionnaire & focused group discussions (FGDs) were used to collect the data. It was entered in EPINFO version 2000 and analyzed using SPSS for Windows version 15.0. Result: With 100% response rate, 15.5% women involved in all areas of decision, and 5.9% were in any of it. Women education, annual household income and residence were also main determinants for women’s position in household decision. Conclusion and Recommendation: Women’s positions in the household were low in Dabat compared to EDHS 2005. Hence, empowering women through education and designing income generating activities may be helpful for improving women’s household position.