Rural Women's Use Research Articles

Assessment of Rural Women's Use of Food Security Information in Bayelsa State, Nigeria

ABSTRACTThis study investigated rural women's use of food security information in Bayelsa State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 120 respondents. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. A greater proportion (56.1%) of the women were classified as low users of food security information. Mass media exposure (t = 4.38; p = .000) and market distance (t = −2.02; p = .049) significantly influenced rural women's use of food security information. The study recommends that identified constraints to the use of food security information be addressed so as to improve the household food security situation.

Use Of Indigenous Knowledge By Rural Women In The Development Of Ogun State

This article is based on a study that investigated rural women's use of indigenous knowledge (IK) in the development of Ogun State. Among others, the study aimed at identifying the nature and types of IK being used by the rural women, the extent of use as well as the domains of use. It equally aimed at finding out how the rural women's use of IK has positively affected sustainable development in Ogun State. The survey research design was adopted. The targeted population comprised rural women in Odeda local government area of Ogun State. A purposive sample of 250 respondents was selected. Data was collected with an interviewer-administered structured questionnaire and analyses were carried out using frequencies and percentage distributions. Findings revealed that the majority of the rural women were farmers and illiterates but have vast knowledge of traditional medicine. There was an extensive use of oral IK in various domains: culture transfer and preservation, food security, saving and lending money, population control, childcare, etc but its greatest impact was in the area of food production. Keywords: Rural women, sustainable development, indigenous knowledge.Indilinga Vol. 7 (1) 2008: pp. 47-63

Women, energy and sustainable development

Sustainable development is an equitable, empowering, environmentally sound, economically viable process of growth. Energy is the key indicator of sustainable development. About 74% of the population of India live in rural areas. 80% of their energy needs are derived from biomass. About 92% of this energy is consumed in cooking activity. Women play a major role in biofuel management. Rural women's perspective in sustainable development is therefore critical. Declining biofuel resources, poor quality of the available biofuels and inefficient devices have pushed women into greater hardships. This paper examines the role of rural women in biomass management. The energy resources that rural women use, the strategy that the government and other organisations have adopted to alleviate rural energy problems and how these strategies have benefited women and improved their quality of life, the importance of incorporating the concept of “gender and development” in alternative energy strategies to achieve the objectives of sustainable development are discussed in this paper.

Education and Income Differentials in Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening

Despite substantial evidence of socioeconomic differences in the use of breast and cervical cancer screening, the mechanisms explaining these differences, and therefore their policy implications are not well understood. We investigated the way that education and income influence rural women's use of mammograms and Pap tests, including financial barriers to medical care, knowledge and attitudinal barriers, and nonfinancial factors related to health-care access. Data were from a population-based telephone survey of 2,346 rural Wisconsin women aged 40 years and older. Logistic regression analyses and simulation exercises were conducted. The strongest barriers to screening in this rural population were nonfinancial impediments to access. Removing economic barriers did not lead to significant increases in screening when other types of barriers were present. Policies and interventions that focus on the most visible differences that exist between rural women of differing socioeconomic levels (ie, differences in the ability to afford health services) and do not simultaneously address knowledge, attitudinal, and health-care access barriers will fall short of their goal to increase breast and cervical cancer screening.

Rural Women Use of Improved Shea butter Processing Technologies in Ilorin East Local Government Area, Kwara State, Nigeria

This paper assessed the usage of improved Shea butter processing technology among rural women in kwara State. Specifically, the study focused on the socio economic characteristics of rural women in the study area, their access to information about Shea butter processing technology, knowledge level of respondents on the usage of the improved processing technology which comprises of the grinder (crusher), corn mil, kneader, and bridge press and also constraints experienced by the respondents in the usage of the improved processing technology. Multistage sampling technique was used to select 120 respondents for the study. The results show that Shea butter processing is mostly carried out by married women and had primary school education. Processors hardly seek information to improve their activity. Result urther revealed low knowledge on the use of improved processing technologies. Constraints faced by processors on the use of these improved technologies include high cost of equipment and inadequate technical know -how. This paper is optimistic that Shea butter has a lot of potentials but is still underutilized and should be vitalised by government and NGO as a way of alleviating poverty among rural women.Key words: Processing technology, Shea butter, rural women