Sharing the burden: Shifts in family time use, agency and gender dynamics after introduction of new cookstoves in rural Kenya

Abstract

It is estimated that women in Sub-Saharan Africa spend three times longer than men on unpaid work, such as household chores and caregiving. ‘Time poverty’ restricts women's involvement in paid work, as well as educational, political, and social activities, thereby perpetuating gender inequality, economic poverty, and a persistent drudgery trap. A significant time burden for women living in communities dependent on biomass fuel and traditional cookstoves arises from the procurement and preparation of fuel, as well as from long hours cooking on inefficient, polluting stoves. We used a mixed methods study in 55 households in rural Kenya to explore the impact of introducing a more efficient biomass cooking technology on time use and quality. Quantitative survey, stove use monitors (SUMs), and qualitative research methods were used before and after households were given new wood burning stoves.