CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
In the past three decades, the debate on the role of women in societies and their participation in economic activity has sparked a lot of controversy. There are those, who passionately argue that women are by nature nurturers and they should, therefore, maintain the domestic roles of childbearing and homemaking. It is there that their greatest pleasure and achievements should lie (Deckard,
1983). Borne of this conversation is the modern-day progressive advocacy by Civil Societies (CSOs), Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and Governments for the inclusion of women, as well as ensuring equality of both sexes, in all aspects of socio-economic life.
It is suggested that in pre-colonial times, gender relations ensured that men and women had different but equal roles, and worked in tandem to realise the economic empowerment and independence of both sexes. According to scholars of this school of thought, a major reason that led to the confusion of the significance of women in the economic sphere is the prejudice about the African woman by the expatriates, coupled with our significant lack of adequate records to refute this notion. European travellers projected onto the African society their belief of relegating women to the ‘delicate’ sphere or domestic life, while their men built nations and empires (Aidoo, 1985).
On the other hand, other scholars argue that rather than creating gender inequalities, colonisation in British West Africa merely reinforced them (Bakare-Yusuf, 2003). In this era, policies were already
designed to assign women domesticated roles that matched the traditional requirements. In the economic activity arena for instance, the colonial state disregarded the belief that native Gold Coast women should participate in work outside the home and placed women in exclusively domestic roles. Within the home, the likelihood of a young female gaining entry into an educational institution was low (Bakare-Yusuf, 2003). Even if such a young lady would be so fortunate as to be educated, she would receive an education that emphasised more domestic than technical skills. It was the latter that gave more opportunity for formal sector employment (Graham, 1971). The select few who made it to the formal sector had to resign due to various reasons such as getting married and conceiving a child (Tsikata, 2013).
The ever-transforming dynamics of relations of power within families and society have seen traditional roles in today’s society altered, where women now perform male roles and vice versa. The last decade in Ghana has seen more and more women engaging in formal employment outside their homes, regardless of historical obstacles. This is evident in the emerging family that is the dual-career household, which is characterised by both spouses engaging in paid formal employment. However, the burden still falls to the woman to combine household responsibilities with her career demands (Amu, 2005).
In addition to the burgeoning dual-career household, women have actually made significant progress on all facets of the Ghanaian economy, notably in the agricultural and service sectors roles in the Ghanaian economy. They are therefore no longer solely confined to the home, but have spanned all sectors of the economy. Women’s participation in the labour force has contributed to household incomes and the education and health of the dependent population. It should also be noted that, women in the informal sector are paramount players in the economic activities of the nation. A
particularly vivid manifestation of this influence was the razing down of Makola Market, and the ensuing violence carried out against the market women by soldiers, during the 1979 Ghanaian military regime. In this instance, the traders were accused of corrupt practices such as hoarding, which consequently drove up the prices of goods. This incident was an example of how the domineering influence of men allows them to misconstrue the activities of women and other men, even in the face of such evidence (Manu, 1992). Notwithstanding the evidence of influence held by women, even in the informal sector, as greater numbers of men enter the informal workforce, “women tend to be pushed to the lowest-income end of the informal economy, often as industrialised outworkers or petty traders” (ILO, 2002a). This reinforces the idea that although women may largely dominate the informal sector, they do not necessarily occupy the more lucrative positions.
The concern for the needs of women with lower incomes, has coincided with recognition of their important role in development. Since the 1950s, many different interventions have been made reflecting changes in macro level and economic and social policy approaches to development in developing countries, as well as in state policy toward women (Amu, 2005).
Contrary to this progress, there are still major inconsistencies in women’s access to economic resources and education that will enable them to achieve their economic and social goals.
Problem Statement
In the past decade, calls for the empowerment of women in the area of education and occupational proliferation have gained momentum globally. In view of this, several studies have been undertaken. Notable amongst these studies are those conducted by Ross and Wu (1995), Kharmis, Hanoon and
Belarbi (2010) and Fasih (n.d.) which established a link between women’s educational attainment and their occupation. These studies however, are contextually different, and may not be applicable to the Ghanaian case due to differences in the socio-cultural environment. Furthermore, published literature on this topic in relation to Ghana is limited as most of the studies done neither explored the factors that contribute to women’s educational attainment, nor explain how educational attainment influences women’s occupational choice.
Education is undeniably an important means of empowering women with the knowledge, skills and self-confidence necessary to enable them participate fully in the development process (UNFPA, 1994). Over the last decade, despite attempts by the government of Ghana to raise the level of education of women in the country, the percentage of women who go ahead to get a full cycle of education from primary to tertiary is still significantly lower when compared to that of men.
In Ghana, negative cultural mind-set and beliefs regarding educating female children is a challenge to achieving equity between men and women in terms of education and occupational aspiration (Amu, 2005). Although there has been changes to these negative cultural notions towards the education of women, there still exists in some Ghanaian societies factors that inhibit the ability of women to fully pursue their desired occupations. Some parents believe that an educated son will be able to provide for his family, whereas an educated daughter will become a mother and wife, regardless of her schooling (Amu, 2005). Thus they still prefer to invest in higher education and provide better opportunities for their male children.
According to Amu, (2005), the relatively low educational status and literacy levels of women in Ghana is evidenced by the lower representation of women in skill and the knowledge-based industry as opposed to the higher number found in the informal private sector employment and self- employment.
The Ghana Demographic Health Survey (GDHS) report of 2014 indicates a high level of correlation between women’s level of education and their employment status (GSS, 2014).
