the role of agriculture in the economic empowerment of women in the ejisu juaben municipality in the...

8/13/2019 The Role of Agriculture in the Economic Empowerment of Women in the Ejisu Juaben Municipality in the Ashanti Region of Ghana

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Journal of Environment and Earth Science www.iiste.org

ISSN 2224-3216 !a"er# ISSN 222$-%&4' (nline#

)ol. 3* No.11* 2%13

113

The Role of Agriculture in the Economic Empowerment of

Women in the Ejisu Juaben Municipality in the Ashanti Region of

GhanaSeth ("o+u ,ensah1iana /0an an+son2

1. /ssistant evelo"ment !lanning (fficer* /gona est ,unici"al /sseml* /gona Swedru* 5hana2.egional !lanning 7o-ordinating 8nit* /shanti egional 7o-ordinating 7ouncil* 9umasi* 5hana

E-mail of the corres"onding author: seth.o"o+u;mensah


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Journal of Environment and Earth Science

ISSN 2224-3216 !a"er# ISSN 222$-%&4'

)ol. 3* No.11* 2%13

@he districts are Se+ere East andand /sante /+im South istricts tothe est.

FiSource: E>isu

%! Approach and Method

@he esearch ado"ted an integrativand "artici"ator research techniuorder to otain a sam"le "o"ulation@he esearch is an em"irical inveesearch was a case stud a""roaunder investigation. @he esearchsources of data used were howeverfield surve using instruments sucho"en-ended* matri= and continge

iscussions F5s# where necessar@he "rimar data was otained froadministered to 7o-o"erative for /Food and /griculture* the 5hanathrough +e informants? interviews.also otained from "ulished docre"orts* national and other relevanwomen economic em"owerment.7urrentl* there are an estimated nsam"ling frame and a confidencefarmers.

&! 'onceptual 'onsiderations

4.1 Gender Approaches in Develop@he changing "erce"tions aout wo

nline#

114

figa 9ware to the Northeast and Northwest res"the South the /sante /+im North to the East and th

ure 1: ,a" of E>isu Juaen ,unici"al /reaJuaen ,edium-@erm evelo"ment !lan* 2%1%-2%1

a""roach which comined the relevant elements ofes. @his was develo"ed ased on inter"la of des+wto wor+ with and also the right amount of informationstigation to understand the issue under stud. @heh aimed at offering the o""ortunit for in-de"th sturs made use of a comination of "rimar and secofrom "rimar sources. @he sources of the "rimar das interview guides* uestionnaires structured K clos

c uestions#* field oservation* "ersonal intervie

.sources such as individuals and grou"s. Institutio

ssistance and elief Everwhere 7/E# Internatioocoa Coard 7(7(C(# and the ,unici"al /gric

. Coth ualitative and uantitative data were collectments* re"orts* >ournals* "eriodicals* the internet*t state and non-state institutions that have interest

mer of 12*'44 women in agriculture in the ,unici" level of &%* 1%% household uestionnaires were

ent Programmesmen and develo"ment have resulted in a gradual shif

www.iiste.org

ectivel the Cosomtwi9umasi ,etro"olis to

ualitative* uantitativeor+ and field surve into su""ort the Stud.a""roach used in this

d of the "henomenonndar data. @he ma>orata were otained frome-ended* unstructured -ws and Focus 5rou"

al uestionnaires wereal* 5hana* ,inistr ofulture e"artment andd. Secondar data wasaga0ines* news"a"ers*in the agriculture and

alit. 8sing that as thedministered to women

in the wa women are


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"erceived within develo"mental thin+ing from that of victims and "assive o>ects to inde"endent actors./ccording to )igneri and Dolmes 2%%&: 3#* there has een the widel acce"tance of the increasingl im"ortantrole of women in oth social and economic develo"ment. @his role is however hindered when women lac+control over "roductive resources and the o""ortunit to "artici"ate in decision-ma+ing "rocesses at all levels.

5ender develo"ment a""roaches var ut there has een the focus on women control over "roductive resourcesand the o""ortunit to "artici"ate in decision-ma+ing "rocesses at all levels. (ver the ears however* issues withgender s"ecific "rogrammes have focused on omen in evelo"ment I#* 5ender and evelo"ment 5/#and the Em"owerment /""roach. For the "ur"oses of this Stud* the Em"owerment /""roach is discussed.4.1.1 The Empowerment Approach

@he Em"owerment /""roach as a 5ender /""roach in evelo"ment !rogrammes is concerned with theintegration of gender1as a crosscutting issue in develo"ment organisation and in interventions. @his has ecomewell +nown in the develo"ment field and its cognates as Bmainstreaming?. @he Em"owerment /""roach has

een associated with the evelo"ment /lternatives with omen for a New Era /N#. In the conte=t ofem"owerment* /N focused on "ersonal autonom. /ccording to them* autonom for women* for the "oor*and for the nations of the develo"ing world means that the are ale to ma+e their own choices in the realms of

"olitics* economics and societ Snder and @adessa 1&&$#./N through the Em"owerment /""roach sees autonomous women?s organisations as the medium through

which targeted measures should reach women and that Em"owerment /""roach calls for "artici"ation and see+sto create self-reliance. In this conte=t* em"owerment ecomes a "rocess that cannot e given to or for women*

ut has to emerge from them. @his conce"tion of em"owerment as a dnamic* enaling "rocess in turn hasim"lications for "olitical action and for develo"ment agencies 9arui* 2%%6: H.It is against this theoretical ac+ground that the tone is set for suseuent discussions on agriculture and womeneconomic em"owerment in 5hana. @he Stud focuses on the agricultural sector which has een at the centrestage in recent develo"ment "olicies and agenda.4.2 Empowerment

@he various definitions of em"owerment de"ict oth diversit and commonalit. ,ost of the definitions havehowever focused on issues of gaining "ower and control over decisions and resources that determine thewelleing of one?s life. Inherentl* it is an ideolog endowed with "otential for assisting develo"ment growth*es"eciall for women in develo"ing nations 9arui* 2%%6: '. /N sees em"owerment as re"resenting thetransformation of "ower relations throughout societ* increased welleing* communit develo"ment* self-

sufficienc* e="ansion of individual choices and ca"acities for self-reliance. @his definition "erha"s seems tosustantiate one of the few s"ecific em"owerment definitions that centred on women?s develo"ment iid#. In asimilar manner* 9aeer 2%%1# defines em"owerment as the "rocess which women ta+e control andownershi" of their lives through the e="ansion of their choices.It must e em"hasised that due to the astract nature of em"owerment* some of their e="lanations and usages areoutside the sco"e of this stud. For instance* the orld Can+ defines em"owerment as the "rocess of increasingthe ca"acit of individuals or grou"s to ma+e choices and to transform those choices into desired actions andoutcomes. 7entral to this "rocess are actions which oth uild the individual and collective assets of the "oor andim"rove the efficienc and fairness of the organisational and institutional conte=t that govern the use of theseassets orld Can+ !overt /nalsis 2%%3#. In addition* the 2%%3 orld Can+ /nnual e"ort and other orldCan+ re"orts since the earl 1&&%s* recognises that em"owerment is ver vital to the overall "rogress indevelo"ment as it Lensures that all "eo"le have the ailit to sha"e their own lives "roviding o""ortunit andsecurit and fostering effective "artici"ation and social inclusionM ".13#.

From the aove* em"owerment has a s"ecific focus in women?s develo"ment concerns in the develo"ingcountries. @here is the need therefore to e="lore the tenants and focus of women and their economicem"owerment.4.3 Women Empowermentomen em"owerment has een identified as a "anacea to "romote gender eualit and "overt alleviationamong "oor women /n>ali et al.* 2%%$#. ,aou= 2%%%# laid out a framewor+ that is useful for develo"ingstrategies for women?s em"owerment when she sees em"owerment as a "rocess of change in "ower relationsthat is oth multidimensional and interlin+ed. In addition* most researchers have lin+ed em"owerment towomen?s develo"ment. For instance* Dainard and )erschuur 2%%1# see em"owerment as a "rocess ofdevelo"ing negotiating s+ills from the ottom u" to redress uneual "ower relations and "roduce newdevelo"ment "aradigms and hence to successfull em"ower women. @he added that oth gender andem"owerment concerns should e integrated into ever service "rovision area. /dding to this* ,aou= 2%%%#asserts that women should e incor"orated in the economic* "olitical and social s"heres as well as at the

individual* household and communit levels in order to overcome gender ineualit. In addition* Je>eeho2%%%# identifies social institutions as highl influential in sha"ing a woman?s autonom. De elieves that these


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institutions should "rovide com"rehensive* direct and conte=t-s"ecific strategies to em"ower women. @hesestrategies include creating gender consciousness* enaling women to moili0e communit resources and "ulicservices* "roviding su""ort to the challenges of traditional norms and "roviding access to vocational and lifes+ills to increase women?s access to and control over economic resources.

omen?s em"owerment is however not an eas outcome to measure. @here is therefore the need to go eondstandardi0ed indicators and focus on conte=t s"ecific indicators that refer to social relations. @hese indicatorsmight include factors such as the distinction etween individual and collective awareness* increased self-esteemand an analsis of grass-roots organi0ations Dainard and )erschuur* 2%%1#. In addition* Dashemi et al.* 1&&6#

"osited that the methods used to measure women?s em"owerment in one societ can e deemed com"letelirrelevant in another. @herefore* cultural factors in each societ also need to e ta+en into account. @ale 1 showsthe various dimensions of em"owerment and "articularl focusing on women?s em"owerment.

@ale 1: imensions of Em"owerment

Dimension Household Community Broader Arenas

Economic omen?s control overincome relativecontriution to familsu""ort access to and

control of famil resources

omen?s access toem"loment ownershi" ofassets and land access to creditinvolvement andAor

re"resentation in local tradeassociations access to mar+ets

omen?s re"resentation inhigh "aing >os women7E(s re"resentation ofwomen?s economic interests

in macroeconomic "olicies*state and federal udgets

Socio-

Cultural

omen?s freedom ofmovement lac+ ofdiscrimination againstdaughters commitment toeducating daughters

omen?s visiilit in andaccess to social s"aces accessto modern trans"ortation

"artici"ation in e=tra-familialgrou"s and social networ+sshift in "atriarchal norms suchas son "reference# smolicre"resentation of the female inmth and ritual

omen?s literac and accessto a road range ofeducational o"tions !ositivemedia images of women* theirroles and contriutions

Familial/

Interpersonal

!artici"ation in domesticdecision-ma+ing control

over se=ual relationsailit to ma+echildearing decisions* usecontrace"tion* accessaortion control overs"ouse selection andmarriage timing freedomfrom domestic violence

Shifts in marriage and +inshi"sstems indicating greater value

and autonom for women e.g.*later marriages* self selection ofs"ouses* reduction in the

"ractice of dowr acce"tailitof divorce# local cam"aignsagainst domestic violence

egionalAnational trends intiming of marriage* o"tions

for divorce "olitical* legal*religious su""ort for or lac+of active o""osition to# suchshifts sstems "roviding easaccess to contrace"tion* safeaortion* re"roductive healthservices

Legal 9nowledge of legal rightsdomestic su""ort fore=ercising rights

7ommunit moili0ation forrights cam"aigns for rightsawareness effective localenforcement of legal rights

Gaws su""orting women?srights* access to resources ando"tions /dvocac for rightsand legislation use of >udicialsstem to redress rightsviolations

Political 9nowledge of "oliticalsstem and means ofaccess to it domesticsu""ort for "oliticalengagement e=ercisingthe right to vote

omen?s involvement ormoili0ation in the local

"olitical sstemAcam"aignssu""ort for s"ecific candidatesor legislation re"resentation inlocal odies of government

omen?s re"resentation inregional and national odiesof government strength as avoting loc re"resentation ofwomen?s interests in effectiveloies and interest grou"s

Psychological Self-esteem self-efficac"schological well-eing

7ollective awareness ofin>ustice* "otential ofmoili0ation

omen?s sense of inclusionand entitlement sstemicacce"tance of women?sentitlement and inclusion

Source: ,alhotra et al. 2%%2#/ccording to Cuvinic 2%%6#* women em"owerment is not onl a holistic conce"t ut also multi-dimensional inits a""roach and covers social* "olitical* economic and social as"ects as de"icted in @ale 1. Dowever* heconcludes that* of all these dimensions of women?s em"owerment* economic em"owerment is of utmost


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significance in order to achieve a lasting and sustainale develo"ment of societ. @his sets the tone fordiscussions on women?s economic em"owerment.4.4 Womens Economic Empowerment

/ccording to the International Gaour (rgani0ation IG(# there is a strong lin+ etween the vulnerailit of

im"overished women to underem"loment and low returns on laour* es"eciall since most em"loed womenare "art of the informal econom 9essides* 2%%$#. / stud conducted in /frica found that &2 "er cent of >oo""ortunities for women outside of agriculture were in the informal econom iid#. @his e="oses "oor womento greater financial ris+s* lower standards of human develo"ment and limited access to resources from socialinstitutions. ,an other studies have recogni0ed the im"ortance of economic em"owerment of women inim"roving the status of im"overished women. Cuvinic 1&&6# states* Lthe most straightforward vehicle toBem"ower? "oor women is to increase their "roductivit in home and mar+et "roduction and the income theotain from wor+M.@he IG( has "ro"osed various was for increasing women?s access to land and other assets as strategies tocomat this "rolem 9essides* 2%%$#. ,ahmud 2%%3# contends that "roviding securit of tenure will encouragemore women to use their domestic s"ace for income-generating activities. (ther recommendations includeinvesting in human ca"ital such as training for "roductive em"loment* "roviding financial resources with afocus on credit* e="anding wage em"loment o""ortunities* im"roving social "rotection for female wor+ers and

em"owering women through greater organi0ation.Income-generating activities are seen as Lentr "oints for channels of communication and vehicles whichwomen can meet their needsM ogers and oussef* 1&''#. @he "rovide effective was to address ineualitiesin the areas of health* education and "overt alleviation. ,an researchers have recogni0ed that im"rovements inhealth care* nutrition and education can onl e sustained with an increase in household income and greatercontrol women over their financial resources Dashemi* 2%%4#. Economic em"owerment "ro>ects usuallfocus on income-generating activities* which allow women to inde"endentl acuire their income. Income-generating activities encom"ass a wide range of areas* such as small usiness "romotion* coo"eratives* >ocreation schemes* sewing circles and credit and savings grou"s /lee* 1&&4#. In all these areas* the active roleof agriculture in women economic em"owerment cannot e underestimated.4. Women in Agric!lt!re

/griculture for the "ur"oses of this Stud ado"ts the definition given the orld Can+* Food and /griculture(rgani0ation F/(#* and International Fund for /gricultural evelo"ment IF/# 2%% as all "roduction*

mar+eting* and "rocessing activities related to agricultural "roducts* including cro"s* livestoc+* agroforestr* andauaculture. /gricultural laour means human efforts in these areas agricultural wage laour consists of thoseactivities that are remunerated. /gricultural laour* given this definition* can ta+e "lace on-farm for e=am"le*agricultural "roduction activities such as "lanting* weeding* harvesting* mil+ing* or fishing# or off-farm fore=am"le* agro "rocessing activities such as cleaning* cutting* "ac+aging* laelling* or mar+eting#. /griculture isnot snonmous with the rural sector* although most agricultural activities ta+e "lace in rural areas. /griculturallaour can e un"aid such as on-farm famil laour#* "aid-in-+ind such as arter or laour e=change#* self-em"loed such as mar+eting of one?s own "roduce#.@hree 3# out of ever four "oor "eo"le in develo"ing countries live in rural areas* and most of them de"enddirectl or indirectl on agriculture for their livelihoods. In man "arts of the world* women are the main farmersor "roducers* ut their roles remain largel unrecogni0ed @he orld Can+ 2%%& et al.#. /gricultural

"roductivit and efficienc is limited gender ineualities and in so doing* undermine develo"ment agendas.Failure to recogni0e the different roles of men and women is costl ecause it results in misguided "ro>ects and

"rograms* forgone agricultural out"ut and incomes and food and nutrition insecurit. It is time to ta+e intoaccount the role of women in agricultural "roduction and to increase concerted efforts to enale women to move

eond "roduction for susistence and into higher-value* mar+et-oriented "roduction iid#./s countries industrialise* total laour in agriculture has declined and this trend will continue as countriesindustriali0e. Dowever* over half of all laourers worldwide rel on the agricultural sector. In su-Saharan/frica and South /sia* H% "ercent or more of the laour force wor+s in agriculture. In man regions morewomen than men are em"loed in agriculture. In the ,iddle East* more than twice as man women wor+ inagriculture as men and in South /sia* close to one-third more women are wor+ing in the sector than menInternational Gaour (rganisation* 2%%6#. ,ost wor+ in agriculture is onerous and the returns are lower than inother sectors. Im"roving the ualit and uantit of >os in rural areas and in agriculture* for oth women andmen* has een identified as a means of "romoting economic growth and reducing "overt Deint0 2%%6 orldCan+ 2%%H#.Increasing laour o""ortunities and returns for "oor women in rural areas is "ro-"oor and im"roves famil and

social welfare as increasingl evidenced in literature. Increasing women?s earnings and share of famil incomehas een shown to em"ower women strengthening their argaining "ower in the household. Em"irical


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evidence shows that women invest more than men in the develo"ment of children thus* higher levels ofem"loment and earnings for women not onl contriute to current economic growth ut also haveintergenerational im"lications as shown in Figure 2. / gloal increase in women-headed households* which areasset-"oor* heightens the im"ortance of im"roving em"loment o""ortunities to reduce "overt. @he

contriution of women?s wor+ to famil and societ is significant* through their "roductive and re"roductiveroles however* if the uantit and ualit of that wor+ are "oor or if the reinforce "atriarchal gender "ractices*the negative effects on their health and that of their children can attenuate the develo"ment im"act. et* to thee=tent that the em"owerment of women is an end in and of itself* res"onsile em"loment for women canincrease confidence* "romote "artici"ation in communit activities* and contriute to a "erce"tion on the "art ofwomen of a etter life )argas-Gundius* 2%%H#.

Figure 2: elationshi" etween omen Gaour Force !artici"ation GF!#* !overt* and Economic 5rowthSource: /do"ted from ,orrison* a>u* and Sinha 2%%HIt is estimated that the agricultural wor+force in the world is around 1.1 illion* of which 4$% million areestimated to e hired farm wor+ers Durst* @ermine* and 9arl 2%%$#. @he growing "ro"ortion of women in thelaour force has een one of the most stri+ing trends of recent times. @his trend has led to a large od ofliterature deating on the Lfemini0ationM of laour mar+ets @he orld Can+ et al.* 2%%&: 31H#./ccording to the orld Can+ et. al* 2%%&* women re"resent a larger "ro"ortion of laourers than men in theagricultural sectors of /sia* su-Saharan /frica and the ,iddle East and North /frica. omen also dominate insome 7ariean and 7entral /merican countries* es"eciall in economies with low "er ca"ita income. Dowever*irres"ective of the increased "ro"ortion in agricultural wage laour mar+ets for women* it still lags ehind that ofmen in all regions. / further regional data are "resented in @ale 2.


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@ale 2: egional 7haracteristics and 9e Issues of omen?s /gricultural Gaour

Region 'haracteristics of women(s

Agricultural labor force

Key "ssues for women(s

agricultural labor

'entral and $outheastern Europe

)non*E+, and 'ommonwealth of"ndependent $tates )'"$,

Em"loment to "o"ulation ratios:omen: 4$.6 men: 63.'or+ing women in agriculture2%%H#: 1&.2or+ing women in wage >os 2%%H#:H'.$

Gow "ercentage of men and

women in agriculture* ut high"ercentage of women vs. menFormal mar+et stronger in mostcountriesage ineualities in formal mar+etoung women?s em"loment to

"o"ulation ratio higher than foroung men

ural "roductivit low

Gaour legislation not enforcedomen not included inagricultural "roductivit-enhancing "rograms* such astraining

-atin America and the 'aribbean

Em"loment to "o"ulation ratios:omen: 4H.1 men: H3.Hor+ing women in agriculture2%%H#: 1%.H

or+ing women wage and salaried>os 2%%H#: 64.6

7onsiderale variailit acrosscountriesDigh on-farm laor somecountries#Gow ratio "artici"ation in

agriculture in com"arison to men?s"artici"ation5rowing women?s informal laormar+et "artici"ationDigh rates of occu"ationalsegregation

omen?s em"lomento""ortunities in rural and uranareas low(ccu"ational segregationSocial "rotection for women in

growing informal agriculturallaour mar+ets

.orth Africa

Em"loment to "o"ulation ratios:omen: 21.& men: 6&.1or+ing women in agriculture2%%H#: 32.6or+ing women wage and salaried

>os 2%%H#: $'.4

Gowest women?s em"lomentlevels of all regions(nl region where women?sem"loment in agricultureincreasedage laor concentrated in uranareas

,ore women in rural areas thanmen due to migrationDigh "ercentage of women as on-farm laoromen res"onsiilit for smalllivestoc+

Gow "roductivit of on-farmlaourDeav household laor urdensSocial constraints to mar+et wor+Gimited access to nonagriculturalem"loment

Source: International Gaour (rganisation 2%%' orld Can+ 2%%H

/! Results and 0iscussion

.1 Agric!lt!re Activities in the "!nicipalit#

/griculture dominates the local econom the "re"onderance of the numer of the "eo"le it em"los. @heSector em"los $$.6 of the total em"loed laour force. hile aout 'H.2 of the "eo"le engage in agricultureas full-time and "art-time em"loments have their farms located within the ,unici"alit* onl 12.' have theirfarms located outside the ,unici"alit..1.1 $rops Prod!ction

@he ma>or cro"s cultivated in the ,unici"alit include food cro"s - mai0e* "lantain* cassava* rice* cocoam andvegetales and tree cro"s - cocoa* oil "alm and citrus. @ale 3 shows the out"ut of the various cro"s in tons "erseason. /lthough cro" farming in the ,unici"alit is not done in large uantities* most of the food cro"s grownare mainl sold for income and the rest consumed the households. Few of the agricultural "roduce are

"rocessed: 7assava into gari mai0e into corn dough and oil "alm into "alm oil and "alm +ernel oil. @he treecro"s are however grown mainl for commercial "ur"oses.7ro" "roduction in the ,unici"alit is de"endent on rainfall. Casic farm tools such as cutlass and hoes are used.@hese certainl do not "romote and encourage large-scale "roduction for commercial "ur"oses. @o overcomethis* there is the need to ado"t and intensivel mechani0ed agriculture..1.2 %ivestoc& Prod!ction

/nimal Dusandr activities range from large through small to domestic +ee"ing of "oultr* goats* shee"* cattleand "igs with their total stoc+ shown in @ale 3. /out '% of animals are +e"t under the semi-intensive sstemwhere the animals are allowed to forage out of their +ee"ing "laces and return indoors later. /ll commercial


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"oultr +ee"ers however use the intensive sstem of "roduction.@ale 3: ,a>or 7ro"s 5rown and their (ut"ut "er Season @ons# in the ,unici"alit and @o" @en /nimals

eared in the ,unici"alit

'rop 1roduction -i2estoc3 1roduction

ype o! Crop "utput per Season #ons$ ype o! Animal otal Stoc%,ai0e $*4%% Shee" '*%&H

!lantain 32*3%% 5oats &*'42

7assava '1*2%% !igs 11*1%%

ice 1*632 !oultr local 11'*1&'

7ocoam 16*66% !oultr e=otic $%1*%%%

am 4*$6% 7attle 1*4%%

7ocoa 2*$%% uc+ 1H'4

(il "alm 22*1%%.11 @ur+es &2

7itrus 16*&H%.$4 ait $6

!e""er $2.H 5uinea fowls 12H3

Source: ,oF/* E>isu-Juaen ,unici"alit* 2%11.1.3 '!mmar# o( "a)or Agric!lt!ral Prod!ce in the "!nicipalit#

@he ma>or agricultural "roduce and their "ercentage "roduction in the ,unici"alit are:Food 7ro": $3.%@ree 7ro": 2$.$Industrial 7ro": 1.$!oultrAGivestoc+ Farming: 1&.$

Non-traditional Enter"rise: %.$*+,- *ontraditional enterprise incl!des ,lac& Pepper/ Pineapple/ ,ee&eeping/ "!shroom/ Grass c!tter and

'nail rearing.

.2 0arming '#stems

@he ma>or farming "ractice in the ,unici"alit is mi=ed farming &%.1 of the farmers#. hilst the farmerscultivate food and tree cro"s* livestoc+ and "oultr are also +e"t in the ac+ard as a su""lementar source offood and income. @he remaining &.& of the farmers "ractice mono cro""ing.7onsidering the farming sstems* ush fallowing* which is a sstem where a land is left for a "eriod of time toregain its fertilit is eing "ractice 4'.$ of the farmers. @he length of fallow "eriod has een drasticallreduced due to the growing "o"ulation and the increasing demand for lands for uses other than agriculture.7ontinuous cro""ing is "racticed aout 4$.$ of farmers. @his has resulted in loss of soil fertilit andadversel affected out"ut levels. @he remaining 6 of the farmers "ractice cro" rotation..3 Estimated Agric!lt!ral %and Area

/griculture land area in the ,unici"alit is estimatedto e 1'%*&31 hectares./rea under /nnual 7ro"s: H6*26$ Da/rea under @ree 7ro"s: 3'*113 Da/rea under Fallow: 6%*3&3 Da/rea under Forest: 6*16% Da.4 %and wnership %and Ten!re

Gand acuisition is also another issue of im"ortance to women agricultural activities in the ,unici"alit. @hereare asicall three forms of land acuisitions in the ,unici"alit. @hese are famil inheritance#* self or leaseAhiring. Ouite a significant "ercentage $4.$# of the farmers use famil lands. @hose who own the land

"ersonall follow this. @he constitute 2'.' of the farmers. @he rest 16.$# resort to the last o"tion* which is leaseAhiring. @he increasing "ressure on land for oth agricultural and non-agricultural "ur"oses has resultedin land fragmentation and the resultant smaller farm si0es over the ears. @his situation has also im"eded large-scale commercial "roduction.. Average 0arm %and

@he average farm si0e in the ,unici"alit is as low as 1.& acres "er farmer. @his is far elow the nationalaverage of $ acres "er farmer. @he result is the smaller farm si0es that have in turn affected "roduction andconseuentl income and therefore the standard of living of the farmers.$.6 omen in /griculture in the E>isu-Juaen ,unici"alit@he woman is said to e the ac+one of agricultural wor+force as well as the most im"ortant factor in the food

chain which egins from farm "roduction* mar+et and intra household distriution of food. omen in mostsocieties "la a crucial role as food "roducers* "roviders and managers. omen farmers contriute immensel toagriculture in their ca"acit as farm owners* farm "artners and farm laourers.


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In times "ast women in agriculture were largel considered as farmers? wives and therefore their contriution tothe Sector were to a considerale e=tent neglected. Dowever* women are now recogni0ed as more than >ust wivesof farmers ut also as farmers* farm laourers* food "rocessors and distriutors. @hus* women "la a multi-faceted role in agriculture.

(ut of the total women "o"ulation in the ,unici"alit who are active em"loed* 64 are asored theagricultural sector. @he numer of women who are found in the agricultural sector is as a result of the fact that itis a ma>or source food to feed the household and also generate some form of income to su""ort the famil. @hema>or cro"s that the women in the ,unici"alit grow are mai0e* "lantain* cassava* cocoam and somevegetales li+e "e""er* tomatoes* o+ro and garden eggs. Some of the women also cultivate some cash cro"s li+ecocoa and oil "alm. / few of the women es"eciall those in Noewan also cultivate rice. @he women also rearlivestoc+ to "rovide a source of "rotein for the famil.@he women in the agricultural sector are also involved in some form of commerce in terms of the sale of theircro"s to middlemen from 9umasi the egional 7a"ital# and /ccra the National 7a"ital#. @he are also into the

"rocessing of their cro"s in order to add value to them. @his "rocessing comes in the form of dring e=am"lecassava into +on+onte dring the cassava and milling into flour# and oil "alm into "alm oil.. Women Agric!lt!ral Activities in the "!nicipalit#

@he rural nature of the ,unici"alit cou"led with the high illiterac rate among the sam"led women was the

main reason for their massive involvement in agriculture. @he are usuall involved in sowing* weeding*harvesting and in later cases "rocessing farm "roduce. hen interviewed* the married woman asserted theirmuch concern for their families in terms of "roviding their food needs cou"led with the rising cost of food aretheir motivation for staing in agriculture. @his wa* the are alwas assured of the food needs for their familieseven in the lean season. @he again "osited that the are ale to sell "art of their "roduce to earn income tounderta+e other activities. @his is "articularl so during um"er harvest.,ostl* the res"ondents were not involved in an other occu"ation aside agriculture as their main activit. @hesurve revealed that the women are engaged in two main agricultural activities namel* cro" farming &4.*animal farming 1.%2# with 4.%' are engaged in oth activities. Some of the cultivated cro"s are mai0e*

"lantain* cassava* cocoam* rice* am* cocoa* oil "alm* citrus and vegetales li+e garden eggs* o+ro and "e""er.It was again evident that the women cultivate these cro"s ecause of the t"e of soil found in the ,unici"alit.@he irector at omen in /gricultural evelo"ment I/# added that the "re-camrian roc+s of the Cirimianand @ar+waian formations found in the ,unici"alit are generall suitale for agriculture activities and

"articularl for the aove listed cro"s.In their "roduction activities* the women resort to the use of sim"le farm tools such as cutlasses* hoes* a=es* "ic+a=es and mattoc+s. @he women lamented that in as much as the are aware of the limitations in the use of suchsim"le farm tools* the have no other o"tion due to the high cost of going into mechani0ed farming and thee="ertise that is needed to manage and maintain such form of farming eui"ment. @he women rel on laour tocultivate their cro"s. @his is as a result of the nature of agriculture in the ,unici"alit and the wor+load that itcomes with. 8suall* the women who are involved in large-scale "roduction hire laour to hel" them in thestages of tilling the land* "lanting the cro"s and ultimatel during harvesting. @his is mostl associated with the

"roduction of cash cro"s.It ecame evident during the surve that onl 34.H of the women "rocess their cro" "roduce either forconsum"tion or for sale. @he women usuall "rocess cassava into +on+onte2* mai0e into corn dough for ma+ing+en+e2and an+u2and rice is "rocessed into "olished rice. @he low "ercentage of women who engage livestoc+

"roduction asserted that the are onl ale to rear animals that the can easil manage from their homes. Such

animals include shee"* goats and "oultr. @he animals are usuall sold to generate e=tra income to su""ort thelittle the get from the cro" farming. In some cases* the are consumed at home and serve as a source of "roteinfor their families. @he women said that the free-range sstem of the livestoc+ "roduction does not hel" in large-scale animal rearing which the do not have the funds to go into. @he animals on the free-range therefore straand sometimes do not return home whiles others sometimes eat "oisonous "lants that eventuall +ill them.@he 4.%' who are involved in oth "roduction sstems saw it as a convenient wa of farming as the are aleto earn income from oth sources. /gain* the are ale to meet their food needs from their farms without havingto s"end the little the earn on uing from different sources. In that wa* the ecame self reliant in terms ofmeeting their food need. @his was corroorated one the res"ondents who asserted that:

56 am a7le to prepare and serve m# ho!sehold (rom m# own (arm. The onl# thing 6 sometimes do is to

7!# (ish. 6 am there(ore a7le to save some more (rom the little 6 earn to cater (or m# (amil#8.

.9 'torage 0acilities

@he surve analsis revealed that the women have "rolems storing their "roduce and the situation is

com"licated during um"er harvest. @his has resulted in high rate of "ost-harvest loses in the ,unici"alit. @hewomen either store their "roduce at home or in storerooms. @he H2.H2 who store their "roduce at home store in


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their +itchens. @hose who store in their +itchens were aware of the dangers of losing their "roduce in case itcatches fire in the 9itchen ut "osited the have no o"tion. @he situation forces the women to sell their "roduceat chea"er "rices. @he therefore called for efforts to construct storage facilities in their communities so the canstore their "roduce and sell when "rices are high in other to ma+e e=tra gains.

@he remaining 2H.2' who have access to storage facilities are those who are involved in commercial cash cro""roduction and can afford to "a for "ro"er storage facilities. For instances* the women who are involved in the"roduction of rice have access to the government stores in the ,unici"alit. @he Juaen chief also has astoreroom where "alm nuts are stored..: "ar&eting o( Agric!lt!ral Prod!ce

,ar+eting of agricultural "roduce forms a ver im"ortant com"onent in the agriculture "roduction ccle. @heccle is onl com"lete when "roduce gets to the final consumers. oads conditions lin+ing the farms to themar+ets are in de"lorale states and there ma+ing it difficult to trans"ort agricultural "roduce. @he de"loralestate of these roads cou"led with inadeuate storage facilities accounts for high "ost-harvest loses in the,unici"alit. @o guide against this* the women farmers are forced to sell their "roduce at chea"er "rices to avoidloses..1; "ar&et Accessi7ilit#

,ar+eting of agricultural "roduce women in the ,unici"alit is highl unorgani0ed. @here are two ma>or

was that the women in agriculture in the ,unici"alit are ale to mar+et their goods. @he first is through themiddlemen. @he middlemen come in the form of traders who move from the cities to u the farm "roducedirectl from the women on their farms. @hese middlemen ta+e advantage of the "oor state of the roads lin+ingthe farms to the mar+et centres and u the "roduce at chea"er "rices. @he situation is worsened in the rainseason when the roads are not motorale.@he second availale o"tion is when the women themselves ta+e the "roduce to the mar+et centres. @he womenwho want to sell their "roduce at current mar+et "rices and as such resort to this o"tion com"lained of driverscharging e=oritant fares due to the low "assenger-vehicular ratio in the villages as well as the "oor nature of theroads. @here are other farmers who ado"t oth media. @he women who use this o"tion com"lained in one voiceas "resented in Co= 1:Co= 1

hen we do not have the fare to trans"ort our "roduce to the mar+eting centres ourselves* we "refer to sell themin mar+ets in our villages rather than eing cheated middlemen who do not +now the stress we went through

onl to cheat us and en>o from our laour. e are aware this denies us the o""ortunit to ta+e advantage ofmar+ets o""ortunities that e=ist in other igger mar+ets within the egion ut we want it that wa.

Source: Field Surve* Januar 2%12@he ma>or mar+ets availale to the women farmers include the 9onongo mar+et* E>isu mar+et* 7entral mar+etsin 9umasi and /ccra. In trans"orting their "roduce to such mar+ets* 2&.$ of the women use middlemen* 22.$directl trans"ort their "roduce to the mar+et while 4'.% use oth media.

4! 'ontribution of Agriculture to Women Economic Empowerment@he surve analsis revealed that women in the ,unici"alit engage in agriculture for varied reasons. @he most

"rominent reason from the res"onses was their need to earn financial resources to ta+e care of the famil andalso ta+e care of their food as well as other "ersonal needs. @he interactions as well "ersonal oservation duringthe field wor+ "ointed to the fact that agriculture has done uite a lot of good to the women hel"ing them tohave some form of economic freedom and also meeting their asic needs. /griculture?s contriution to women

economic em"owerment in the ,unici"alit is discussed as follows.or limitation of the Stud was the inailit of the women to accuratel "rovide information on theirincomes and e="enditure. @he were however ale to "rovide how much the earn on the average "er ear asde"icted in @ale 3.3 and how the incomes are e="ended as e="anded in item 3.12. /gain* the high illiteracamong the women has resulted in their inailit to +ee" "ro"er records of their usiness transactions.


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@ale 4: Income earned omen in /griculture "er ear

A&"'( #)H5$ PE*CE(A)E

-&& $.11%%-3%% 16.3

3%1-6%% 32.H6%1-&%% 1H.3P&%1 2'.6

Total 66

Source: Field Surve* Januar 2%12ith a dail minimum wage of 5DQ 4.4' in 5hana* the minimum income "er ear in 5hana is 5DQ 1*612.'%.@he surve analsis as de"icted in @ale 4 shows that the women in agriculture in the ,unici"alit earn less thanaverage earl income in 5hana. @his accounts for the high level of "overt among the women in agriculture inthe ,unici"alit. @hese women are not ale to meet their asic needs from the "revailing mar+et "rices of goodsand services. @he "light is worsened as the have no other source of em"loment to earn e=tra income from thelittle the get from agriculture. (nl 36.4 "ercent of the women res"onded as having other form of em"loment.@hese em"loment sources are however related to their agricultural activities either in the form of commerceselling their agricultural "roduce themselves in the mar+eting centres# or industr "rocessing their agricultural

"roduce#.@he women are usuall involved in the cultivation of food cro"s li+e cassava* cocoam among others. @hesecro"s do not have high "rices and as such the current situation. @he 2'.& of the women who earn more than5hR &%% are usuall involved in the cultivation of cash cro"s li+e cocoa and oil "alm. @he current situation doesnot ma+e agriculture attractive to the outh in the ,unici"alit. @he outh see agriculture as occu"ation not for

"eo"le who want to succeed in life. @his mentalit has een frustrating 7/E International 5hana?s efforts attraining the outh in small-scale farming in the ,unici"alit as lamented its "ro>ect facilitator.


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7! 8ther Economic and .on*Economic 9enefits.1 Participation in Decision"a&ing

omen engagement in decision ma+ing at the famil level in most homes in 5hana is minimal. @his is seen asthe sole res"onsiilit of men who are generall considered head of households and as such have the final sa in

an decision-ma+ing on famil issues. @he woman?s contriution is often seen as intangile. /t the communitlevel* women involvement in decision-ma+ing is often missing in the 7ountr. It is even a taoo in somecommunities for women to sit with men to delierate on issues of communit develo"ment. @heir "lace is in the+itchen while the men meet and ma+e all the decisions affecting the communit.@he surve however "roved otherwise. @he massive income contriution of women at the famil level has madeit "ossile for them to have a sa at famil level decision ma+ing. @he are involved in discussing issues such aschildren?s education* marriage* famil "lanning and delierations on famil "ro"ert among others. @he womenagreed that this has een "ossile as the contriute to the u"+ee" of the famil. @he men therefore have noo"tion than engage them in all ma+ing-decisions "rocesses.@he women active involvement in famil level decision-ma+ing due to their modest economic em"owerment hasculminated in them having a voice at the communit level. @he women agreed that their contriution tocommunit develo"ment through the "ament of their develo"ment lev warrants their involvement incommunit level decision-ma+ing. @he therefore have the right to attend communit meetings in order to

e="ress their views concerning the develo"ment of their area. @hese women now have leadershi" roles in theirfamil* churches and the communit at large. No matter the magnitude and dimension of the issues at sta+e* thewomen now have a sa as the elieve the are now outs"o+en and courageous enough for that. @his the

elieve was made "ossile due to their economic em"owerment..2 $ontri7!tion to $omm!nit# Development

omen in agriculture in the ,unici"alit contriute either in +ind or in cash to the develo"ment of theircommunities. @he surve analsis revealed that the women are in one wa or other ale to su""ort theircommunities to ring aout develo"ment. It was oserved that 66.H of the women interviewed were ale tosu""ort or contriute to the develo"ment of their communities financiall. @his contriution comes in the formof communit donations or fundraising and communit levies. @he women are again ale to offer themselvesduring communal laour and in some cases ale to "rovide food during communal laour. @he women are againale to contriute their uota in no small wa during festivals and communit durars..3 'el( Esteem/ '!((icienc# and @espect

Self Esteem and res"ect are some of the ma>or non-economic enefits that the women have acuired through thereturns from their agricultural activities. For instance* in the communities* mothers who are ale to cater for theeducational* health* food and other material needs of their famil are seen as eing res"onsile "arents. @heirincomes also enale them to "erform other social res"onsiilities which earn them res"ect from the othermemers of the societ./gain* the women are ale to "rovide for themselves without de"ending on others for su""ort. @he womentherefore do not de"end on their husands or other e=ternal famil memer for financial and material su""ort.@he said that the returns the generate from their activities hel" them finance "ersonal and famil e="enses aswell as "aing for social services li+e education and health care. @his has hel"ed them to ecome self sufficientand there gaining self esteem and res"ect in their various communities..4 Economic %i7eration+ 6ndependence@he women in the ,unici"alit who are engaged in agriculture said the are at liert to +ee" and use theirincomes devoid of an influence. From the surve* &3.& of the women agreed to en>oing economic

inde"endence. @he women decide what to do with their incomes which are usuall s"ent on food e="enditure*investing in education and health. @he women again asserted that "art of their incomes are used as seed monefor other investments es"eciall in investing in their agricultural activities. @his gives the women inde"endenceand financial autonom and suseuentl economic em"owerment.

:! Major 'hallenges or 'onstraints to Women Agriculture 0e2elopment

Notwithstanding the aove enefits that women in agriculture in the ,unici"alit en>o* their activities are stillconfronted with a numer if challenges as elaorated elow.9.1 Poor 0arming Practices

(ne ma>or challenge the surve analsis identified is the "oor farming "ractice used the women in the,unici"alit. @he still use sim"le and osolete farm tools as well as traditional farming methods. @he womenuse hand tools li+e hoes* a=es and cutlasses. @hese farming "ractices do not encourage large-scale agricultural

"roduction. @his was identified as the main reason of their low ields and its associated low incomes. @he

continuous farming on the same "iece of land cou"led with their inailit to fertilise the lands also affects theirield.


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9.2 'easonalit# o( Activities@he agricultural activities in the ,unici"alit are mostl seasonal. Farming is not done all ear round ecause ofthe t"e of cro"s that are cultivated in the area. 7ro"s li+e mai0e* cassava* "lantain and even cocoa are notavailale all ear round. @his ma+es it ver difficult for the women to get constant flow of income. /s the

women solel de"end on agriculture for their livelihood* the are adversel affected during lean season. /gain*due to their "oor saving haits* the are ver much hit during such "eriod. @here is alwas food insecurit inman homes during such "eriods with meals usuall served once a da.9.3 The Di((ic!lt *at!re o( the Wor&

/gricultural activities in the ,unici"alit are mostl laour intensive. @he women therefore hire laour to hel"them on their farms. @his adversel affects their incomes with reference to their out"uts and "rices the get fromthe sale of agricultural "roduce. @he hire laourers charge e=oritant "rices for their services and thus negativelaffecting their incomes. / high "ercentage of their incomes therefore go into hired laour.9.4 Poor @oad $onditions and *etwor&/nother ma>or challenge the women acceded to was the road conditions and networ+ leading to the farmingareas. In most cases* there are no roads leading to their farms. @he therefore have to create their own "aths totheir farms. @he few farms that have access to roads leading to their farms are nothing to write home aout. Suchroads are in de"lorale states. @his the women com"lained aout itterl. @he situation is com"licated during the

rain seasons. @heir farms are alwas cut off when there are heav down"ours. @he then need to find out wasand means to get to their farms with no ho"e of an road or "ath.@he "rolem raises its head the more during the harvesting "eriod. @here are alwas difficulties trans"ortingtheir goods to the mar+eting centres. @his forces 2&.$ of the women to sell their "roduce to middlemen atlower "rices. @he 22.$% who directl ta+e their "roduce to the mar+eting centres do so with regrets. @hedrivers loo+ing at the road conditions and networ+ charge higher fares. @he 4' who ado"ts oth media faces

oth challenges. /lso* the women lose most of the "roduce due to such situations. @hese* as well as high laourcost cou"led with lower ields negativel affect their income levels and hence livelihood.9. %ac& o( Government '!pport

@here is a general lac+ of government su""ort to women agricultural activities in the ,unici"alit. @he surveanalsis revealed that the women farmers do not receive an form of government su""ort in their activities. (nething the com"lain is the lac+ of e=tension services. E=tensions officers are e="ected to assist farmers ingeneral in their farming activities ut the government e=tension officers neglect this. In some instances* the

com"lained that the are forced to "a for such services that the elieve should e offered for free.

;! "nstitutional $upport for Women in Agriculture in the Ejisu*Juaben Municipality:.1 Women in Agric!lt!ral Development W6AD

omen in /gricultural evelo"ment I/# is one of the directorates under the ,inistr of Food and/griculture ,oF/#. It is a de"artment res"onsile for women who are in one wa or the other engaged in anform of agricultural activit. @he main vision of the e"artment is to im"rove the living and wor+ing conditionsof rural household es"eciall women in terms of increasing their income* im"roving their nutritional status*health and life e="ectanc. I/ focuses on the achievement of the following o>ectives:

Food "roduction Food-ased nutrition education and diet im"rovement Food "rocessing* "reservation* storage* utili0ation and mar+eting and Farm and home management for efficient and effective use of resources.

@he e"artment in the ,unici"alit is mainl res"onsile for im"roving the lives of women who are engaged inagricultural activities in the ,unici"alit.:.2 $ooperative (or Assistance and @elie( Ever#where $A@E 6nternational

7o-o"erative for /ssistance and elief Everwhere 7/E# International is a Non-!rofit (rgani0ation N!(#with a gloal confederation of 12 national memer organisations wor+ing together to end "overt. @heorgani0ation came into e=istence after the Second orld ar to hel" im"rove the lives of the marginali0ed thatis "eo"le who were affected negativel after the war. 7urrentl* 7/E International wor+s to ring lastingchange :

Cuilding ca"acit for autonom 7reating economic o""ortunities !roviding assistance in case of emergenc 7ontriuting to strategic decision ma+ing at all levels and /ddressing discrimination in all its forms.7/E International 5hana was estalished in the ,unici"alit in 2%%& to hel" im"rove the lives of the local

"eo"le. 7/E International 5hana"laces s"ecial focus on wor+ing alongside "oor women. @his is ecause the


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(rgani0ation has reali0ed that when eui""ed with the "ro"er resources* women have the "ower to hel" wholefamilies and entire communities esca"e "overt. omen are at the heart of 7/E International 5hanascommunit-ased efforts to im"rove asic education* "revent the s"read of disease* increase access to cleanwater and sanitation* e="and economic o""ortunit and "rotect natural resources. /s a result of the initiative* ten

communities are enefiting from the (rgani0ation in the ,unici"alit. @hese communities are @imeau* 9orase*/"emso* (foase* N+ere"oaso* (doefe* waenman-9rofoforom* /+oronwe* Esaase and adiri.7/E International 5hana as an institution is thus iased towards women and there favours women morethan men when it comes to giving su""ort. @he (rganisation su""orts women in agriculture in the ,unici"alitin the following was.:.2.1 0inancial Training

7/E International 5hana is ale to su""ort women in agriculture to ecome economicall em"owered giving the women some form of financial su""ort. @o do this* 7/E International 5hana initiated a "rogrammecalled )illage Saving and Goans /ssociation )SG/#. @his !rogramme teaches women in agriculture in the,unici"alit aout the hait of saving. @he initiative is necessitated the fact that without an "ro"er financialmanagement techniues* the women will ecome "oorer and "oorer. @he !rogramme is therefore ale to ringwomen grou"s made u" of ten to twent-five memers together to save as a grou". @his is done the womenthemselves and within the grou". /fter some time* when one has saved enough* she can go for a loan to e="and

her agricultural activities.@he surve revealed that through this !rogramme* 7/E International 5hana has een ale to su""ort women inseven out of the total ten women grou"s. ,emers are ale to easil access loans without going through thecumersome "rocesses in securing an+ loans and its attendant unfavourale conditions.:.2.2 $apacit# ,!ilding

7/E International 5hana in con>unction with ,oF/ and @he 5hana 7ocoa Coard 7(7(C(# are ale tohel" the women farmers uild their ca"acit. @hese institutions "rovide training to women in agriculture in the,unici"alit to e ale to ecome self sufficient in their agricultural activities. @he training usuall comes in theform of learning and "ractising new and modern techniues of agricultural "roduction. 8suall* the women are

"rovided with seedlings and also shown how new varieties of seedlings are "lanted and maintained for im"rovedields. @he are also given fertili0ers to hel" enrich the nutrient level of the soil.7urrentl* 7/E International 5hana has 1%%% memers in the E>isu-Juaen ,unici"alit made u" of $$% menand 4$% women. @he (rganisation is again involved in the "rovision of training to the outh in the ,unici"alit.

It usuall focuses on students in Senior Digh Schools SDSs# and trains them to go into some small-scalefarming. ,ost of these SDS students are females who use this as an o""ortunit to earn some income when theare on vacation.

6! Recommendations for 1olicy Action

@his as"ect of the research loo+s at the suggestions that can hel" women in agriculture in the E>isu Juaen,unici"alit as well as "olic ma+ers in their attem"t to em"ower women in the ,unici"alit and countr. Fromthe analsis* the sta+eholders involved raised a numer of issues and these issues were found to affect women?seconomic em"owerment.1;.1Etension o( $A@E 6nternational Ghanas Activities to the Entire "!nicipalit#From the contriutions that 7/E International 5hana has een ale to give to the ,unici"alit in terms ofdevelo"ment and hel"ing "eo"le es"eciall women* the should e=tend their o"erations to other communities.@his will hel" more "eo"le es"eciall women farmers to en>o their services and ecome economicall

em"owered in the long run.1;.2 Adoption o( B'%A 7# the "!nicipal Assem7l#

)SG/ is a ver good strateg that 7/E International 5hana is using to em"ower a lot of the women in the fewcommunities the are currentl o"erating in. @he ,unici"al /sseml should ta+e advantage of this andcollaorate with 7/E International 5hana to s"read the !rogramme throughout the ,unici"alit so it ecomesaccessile to all.1;.3 Women '!pport thro!gh Training

,oF/ should come to the aid of the women in the ,unici"alit giving them training on how to go aout theiragricultural activities and also in "rocessing their "roduce to add value efore mar+eting. @here is the need forthe women to e introduced to new and etter farming "ractices through e=tension services. In this direction*there is the need to recruit and train e=tension officers to recognise gender-s"ecific needs.1;.4 Provision o( 'torage 0acilities

@he ,unici"al /sseml should ma+e it a "riorit to go to the aid of the women farmers "roviding them with

storage facilities. (ther develo"ment "artners can e encouraged to hel" in this direction. @his will hel" thewomen to cultivate more ecause the will e ale to get a "lace to store their e=cess "roduce. @his will also


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hel" "revent "ost harvest losses.1;. 6mproving on Transport *etwor&s to 0arms

@he roads leading in and out of the farms should e made easil accessile constructing new roads and trac+sand re"airing e=isting ones to aid in the trans"ortation of "roduce from the farm gates to the mar+et areas. @his

will reduce the amount of food that go waste and increase the amount that goes to the mar+et centers.1;.< 'pecial '!pport

@he women in agriculture in the ,unici"alit should e giving a s"ecial +ind of su""ort the ,unici"al/sseml and other develo"ment "artners. @his su""ort can come in the form of scholarshi" for su""ortingeducation of children of women in agriculture and also healthcare of the women and their children. @his has the

"otenc of luring unem"loed women into the agricultural sector.

! 'onclusion

omen?s ailit to generate income from agriculture is a good determinant of their economic em"owerment.@he are at the centre-"iece of food securit and hence the need to "a "articular attention to women inagriculture. /griculture has hel"ed women in the E>isu Juaen ,unici"alit in diverse was. omen are nowale to have control over income relative contriution to famil su""ort access to and control of familresources. @he are also ale to have access to em"loment ownershi" of assets and land access to credit

involvement andAor re"resentation in local trade associations and access to mar+ets.@his has ecome necessar ecause there is no entr restriction into the agricultural sector. omen who haveta+ing advantage of this have een ale to e em"owered themselves economicall and there significantlcontriuting to the u"+ee" of their families and communities as a whole. @he agricultural activities of women inthe ,unici"alit have hel" sustain food securit in the ,unici"alit ma+ing it one of the est when it comes tofood "roduction and securit.In s"ite of this significant contriution of women to agriculture in the countr* "rolems associated with landownershi"* access to credit and agricultural e=tension services among others "lace constraints in the wa of theirailit to increase their "roductivit and thus their incomes. @hese notwithstanding* their "ersistence and hardwor+ have gone a long wa in hel"ing them realise their dream of economic em"owerment.

References

/lee* /. 1&&4#* LSu""ort to omen?s !roductive and Income-generating /ctivitiesM*Eval!ation and @esearch

Wor&ing Paper 'eries *o. 1* New or+* 8NI7EF./n>ali 9. et al.* 2%%$#* Lor+sho" e"ort on omen?s Economic Em"owerment: ,eeting the Needs ofIm"overished omenM* New or+* 8NF!/.Cuvinic* , 2%%6#* L9e !olic Initiatives on Financing for 5ender Eualit and the Em"owerment of omenM*ashington 7: @he orld Can+.Cuvinic* ,. 1&&6#* L!romoting Em"loment among the 8ran !oor in Gatin /merica and the 7ariean: /5ender /nalsisM* 5eneva: IG(.esai* ). and !otter* . 2%%'#* L@he 7om"anion to evelo"ment StudiesM* 2 nded.* Gondon: /rnold.E>isu Juaen ,unici"al /sseml 2%1% K 2%13#* L,edium @erm evelo"ment !lan !re"ared under 5rowth and!overt eduction StrategM* /ccra: ,inistr of Gocal 5overnment and ural.Dainard* F. and )erschuur 7.* 2%%1#* LFilling the uran "olic reach: omen?s em"owerment* 5rass-rootsorgani0ations and uran governanceM*6nternational Political 'cience @eview* ##1#* "". 33-$4.Dashemi* S. 2%%4#* L,icrofinance and the ,5s8/ TonlineU /vailale at: htt":AA Id21 Insights V$1 T/ccessed 1%

Novemer* 2%11U.Dashemi* S.* Schuler S. and ile /.* 1&&6#* Lural credit "rograms and women?s em"owerment inCangladeshM* World Development* 244#* "".63$- 6$3.Deint0* J.* 2%%6#* L5loali0ation* Economic !olic and Em"loment: !overt and 5ender Im"lications.Em"loment !olic 8nit* Em"loment Strateg e"artmentM* 5eneva: IG(.Durst* !.* @ermine !.* and 9arl ,.* 2%%$#* L/gricultural or+ers and their 7ontriution to Sustainale/griculture and ural evelo"mentM* ome: F/(.International Gaour (rganisation 2%%6#* L5loal Em"loment @rends ,odelM* 5eneva: IG(.International Gaour (rganisation 2%%'#* L5loal Em"loment @rends for omenM* 5eneva: IG(.Je>eeho* S. 2%%%#* Lomen?s Education* /utonom and e"roductive Cehaviour: E="erience fromevelo"ing 7ountriesM* New or+: (=ford 8niversit !ress.9aeer N. 2%%1#* L7onflicts over 7redit: e-evaluating the Em"owerment !otential of Goans to omen inural CangladeshM* World Development* 2&1#* "". 63-'4.

9arui* N. !. 2%%6#* Levelo"ment* ,icro-credit and omen?s Em"owerment: / 7ase Stud of ,ar+et andural omen in Southern NigeriaM* New Wealand: 8niversit of 7anterur.


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9essides* 7. 2%%$#* L7ontriutions of 8ran evelo"ment to Economic 5rowth and !overt eduction in Su-Saharan /fricaM* ashington* .7.: orld Can+.,ahmud* S. 2%%3#* Lomen and the @ransformation of omestic S"aces for Income 5eneration in ha+aCusteesM* $ities 2%$#* "". 321-32&.

,alhotra Coender* /. and Schuler S.* 2%%2#* L,easuring omen?s Em"owerment as a )ariale in Internationalevelo"mentM* JSI esearch and @raining Institute.,aou=* G. 2%%%#* L,icrofinance and the Em"owerment of omen: / eview of the 9e IssuesM* 'ocial

0inance =nit Wor&ing !a"er* 23* 5eneva: IG(.,orrison et al.* 2%%H#* L5ender-Eualit* !overt and Economic 5rowthM* World ,an& Polic# @esearchWor&ing Paper *o. 434:/ Gender and Development Gro!p/ Povert# @ed!ction and Economic "anagement

*etwor&* ashington* 7: orld Can+.ogers* C. and oussef N.* 1&''#* L@he Im"ortance of omen?s Involvement in Economic /ctivities in theIm"rovement of 7hild Nutrition and DealthM* Food and Nutrition Culletin 1%.Snder ,. 7. and @adesse ,. 1&&$#* L/frican women and develo"ment: / DistorM* Johannesurg:itwatersrand 8niversit !ress.@he 5hanaian @imes 2%%6#* Lomen iscuss Em"owermentM* @he 5hanaian @imes* 1% Jul 2%%6: ! 1H.@he orld Can+ 2%%3#* L!overt /nalsisM* TonlineU /vailale at

htt":AAwww.worldan+.orgA"overtAwdr"overtAinde=.htm T/ccessed & (ctoer* 2%11U.@he orld Can+ 2%%3#* @he orld Can+ /nnual e"ort 2%%3* TonlineU /vailale athtt":AAwww.worldan+.orgAannualre"ortA2%%3Adownload;re"ort.html T/ccessed %& (ctoer* 2%11U.@he orld Can+ 2%%H#* Lorld evelo"ment e"ort 2%%': /griculture for evelo"mentM* ashington* 7:orld Can+.@he orld Can+* Food and /griculture (rgani0ation* and International Fund for /gricultural evelo"ment2%%* L5ender in /griculture Sourceoo+M* ashington .7: @he orld Can+.)argas-Gundius* .* 2%%H#* L!olishing the Stone-/ >ourne through the !romotion of 5ender Eualit inevelo"ment !ro>ectsM* ome: International Fund for /gricultural evelo"ment)igneri* ,. and Dolmes* . 2%%* Lhen eing ,ore !roductive still doesn?t "a: Ender Ineualit and Socio-economic 7onstrain in 5hana?s 7ocoa SectorM* 8nited 9ingdom: (verseas evelo"ment Institute

Notes

1. 5ender refers to the roles and res"onsiilities of men and women that are created in our families* oursocieties and our cultures. @he conce"t of gender also includes the e="ectations held aout thecharacteristics* a"titudes and li+el ehaviours of oth women and men femininit and masculinit#.5ender roles and e="ectations are learned. @he can change over time and the var within and

etween cultures. @he conce"t of gender is vital ecause it is a""lied to social analsis. It reveals howwomen?s suordination or men?s domination# is sociall constructed. /s such* the suordination can

e changed or ended. It is not iologicall "redetermined nor is it fi=ed forever as Se= is determined orfi=ed 9arui* 2%%6: H4-H$#

2. Gocall "rocessed foods


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the role of agriculture in the economic empowerment of women in the ejisu juaben municipality in the...

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