The analysis of household members’ time allocation to different activities such as household chores, family farms, wage-earning activities and social events is essential for understanding the behavioural and distributional consequences of economic policies. Gender differentiated time use patterns are affected by age and gender composition of household members, seasonality in farming systems, geographic factors, availability of infrastructure, and distance to key economic and social services. Gender differences in time use are common in Ethiopia, where household members undertake domestic works, farm activities, wage employment, community management, social events and childcare, as well as leisure activities. A better understanding of time use is essential for designing policies for poverty alleviation and provision. In regard to this (Yadeta & Fojo, 2019, 183 – 194) investigated gender differences in domestic and agricultural activities and results showed that rural women had higher participation in agricultural activities than men, and there was an association between gender and participation in decision making.Â
(Yadeta & Fojo, 2019, 183 – 194) found that land preparation and sowing were the activities undertaken by men exclusively while women participated in land preparation and sowing to some extent with their husbands. (Yadeta & Fojo, 2019, 183 – 194) confirmed that farmers in the area have different roles in both productive and reproductive work. Women dominate domestic activities such as fetching water, collecting firewood, house cleaning, caring for children, cooking, and taking care of family members, while men dominate productive activities. In addition, (Desta, 2017, 208) examined the theoretical prediction that labour market participation decreases for mothers with a large number of young children and increases when children are adults and showed that when all households are considered, children seem to have positive effects on the probability of the mother’s work participation. The results of this paper vary by household lifecycle and rural-urban location and the finding from the study revealed that maternal hours of work decrease with an increase in the number of young children, and increases when children become more adult. Â
The prevalence of household enterprises and the traditional nature of farming in rural areas of poor economies means that more rural women have to work longer compared to urban women. (Desta, 2017, 208) indicates that Ethiopian mothers with many young children typically work longer hours in productive activities, although it is asserted that the contribution of children to a rural mother’s participation in hours of work is typically viewed positively, as (Desta, 2017, 208) stated this may have been achieved at the expense of poor child care services, low school enrollment and education of low quality, and increased reliance on child domestic labour, all of which are likely to have significant health, social, and economic implications. Â
Besides, (Kassa & Eniyew, 2018, 108 – 114) analyse gender roles, gender and youth challenges and opportunities and found the presence of gender based discriminatory practice and unequal contribution of men and women in the division of labour. Gender roles are socially defined tasks, responsibilities, and behaviours that are appropriate for men and women. In Ethiopia, gender inequality is a serious concern, with women and girls being subordinated to their husbands, families, and vulnerable to gender based violence. The agricultural sector in Ethiopia shows disproportionate exertion of labour and imbalanced control over products between men and women. (Kassa & Eniyew, 2018, 108 – 114) provides details on this matter and found that women participation in productive activities was minimal due to domestic workload, cultural norms and beliefs, and their perception. Reproductive activities were mostly done by women, with the participation of men below average.
Women in developing countries are highly time constrained due to their engagement in unpaid house work, which impedes their decision making over labour intensive technologies and participation in human capitals such as training on agriculture and rural development. Women are the backbone in social activities such as providing help during emergency cases. However, women’s participation in meetings and training is not as promising as men due to their time constraining.(Yadeta & Fojo, 2019, 183 – 194) found that time allocations between husbands and wives in agricultural and domestic activities were significantly different due to gender based division of labour. Gender inequality in participation and division of labour at the household level was manifested, limiting their participation in decision making and training programs on agriculture. (Yadeta & Fojo, 2019, 183 – 194) suggested that policy makers and NGOs should allocate resources to introduce labour-saving technology and create an enabling environment to challenge unfair gender roles. Raising awareness of gender equality in agricultural production is essential.
Additionally, according to (Tefera, 2020), men handle the majority of farm activities while women handle almost all domestic duties and care. While also attending school, women and female children are in charge of milking cows, processing dairy products, fetching water, gathering firewood, and caring for livestock and small ruminants. According to (Tefera, 2020), the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam’s completion and the electrification of rural communities could have a positive impact on the lives and livelihoods of rural women. The lack of basic infrastructure and high market prices reportedly intensify the daily burden of women and female children.Â
Furthermore (Tefera, 2020) triangulated his results with the most recent nationally representative Ethiopia socio economic household survey and found that women and female children spend up to 60% of their daily time (14:00 hours) on household chores, while men and male children contribute for gathering firewood and marketing, while women and female children engage in farm activities such as milking cows and processing dairy products, weeding, threshing, and land preparation. School age children in rural Ethiopia spend a lot of time tending livestock, fetching water, and gathering firewood, which can have a negative impact on their time for school, study, and homework. To change this, (Tefera, 2020) recommend that development programmes should focus on providing women with technologies to ease their workload, such as access to electricity and clean water, and better infrastructure such as local road network connectivity.
(Dessalegn et al., 2020, 4592) analysed gender context in the Afar region of Ethiopia and proposed strategies to improve adolescent and youth health. It revealed that younger and older women are the most disadvantaged groups due to their high workload, lack of control over resources, limited participation in socio-economic practices, and child and early forced marriage.Â
The Afar region continues to have poor SRH indicators, with a high total fertility rate, teenage childbearing, and the lowest percentage of women who want to limit childbearing (Dessalegn et al., 2020, 4592). Early childbearing can limit women’s future employment opportunities as well as have detrimental social and economic effects on their families, communities, and families. According to (Dessalegn et al., 2020, 4592), the low utilisation of sexual and reproductive health services by women in Afar is a result of their high workload, lack of knowledge, difficulty accessing specialised services, way of life, and cultural and religious considerations. Governments and stakeholders are advised to make developing a coordinated intervention a top priority in order to address gender inequalities and raise the educational attainment of young women, according to (Dessalegn et al., 2020, 4592).Â
Moreover (Dessalegn et al., 2020, 4592)Â stated that in Afar, gendered division of labour is shaped by economic and social structures. Younger and older women participate in mostly unpaid, domestic and external responsibilities, while daughters spend most of their time engaged in activities beyond their capacity. Women have low control over resources at the household and community levels, as schooling is a priority for sons and daughters are encouraged to marry early. Women are unable to acquire their own capital and most family assets are under the control of men.
The other issue is that as more educated and employed women enter various public arenas, their gender roles and social standing change, placing them under a double burden. Education is a crucial tool for empowering married academic women because they are involved in the formation of families and their own development. Accordingly, (Telayneh, 2019) discovered that 15% of women are found to be employees, but social and natural circumstances prevent them from being fully occupied and competing with male coworkers. Married academic women face many obstacles to making a positive impact on society, according to (Telayneh, 2019), including the belief that society discourages girls from pursuing higher education and culturally and naturally based child-rearing obligations. (Telayneh, 2019) stated that unless the patriarchal structure of unbalanced gender roles is changed, women employees will continue to suffer from double/triple burden and their contribution to education or other development aspects will not be worth mentioning.
References
Dessalegn, M., Ayele, M., Hailu, Y., Addisu, G., Abebe, S., Solomon, H., Mogess, G., & Stulz, V. (2020). Gender Inequality and the Sexual and Reproductive Health Status of Young and Older Women in the Afar Region of Ethiopia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(12), 4592.
Desta, C. G. (2017). Do young children prohibit mothers from working? A study in the Amhara Region , Ethiopia. International Journal of Population Studies, 3(2), 208.
Kassa, W. A., & Eniyew, K. (2018). Gender and youth challenges and opportunities in rural community: The case of Goregora, West Dembia district of North West Ethiopia. Journal of Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, 10(6), 108 – 114.
Tefera, N. (2020). Gender-Differentiated Time Allocations on Daily Activities in Rural Ethiopia.
Telayneh, B. (2019). Double Burden of Married Women Academician in Three Public Universities of Ethiopia. International Journal of African and Asian Studies, 56(29).
Yadeta, G., & Fojo, G. A. (2019). Gender differences: Participation in agricultural production in Ethiopia. Harmoni Sosial: Jurnal Pendidikan IPS, 6(2), 183 – 194.