Orisadare Monica Adele
Department of Economics, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, Nigeria.
Front Sociol. 2019 Jul 12;4:52. doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2019.00052. eCollection 2019.
The exclusion of women in politics has been identified in recent times as one of the major setbacks for economic development. Women's groups are a strong pillar for grassroots politics; and a drive for more women participating in politics at the grassroots still faces a lot of challenges, making it difficult for them to harness available opportunities for economic development. Thus, the opportunity therein for more women's participation in politics and women empowerment is yet to be exploited by the women's groups in Nigeria. This present study assesses the role of women's groups in politics, identifies their challenges and also explores its implication for economic development in Osun state, Nigeria. The study was carried out using primary data from forums and dialogues within women's groups, consisting of an average of thirty (30) members from ten (10) local government areas (LGAs) in Osun state, Nigeria. In addition, explorative methods using existing literature were also employed. Findings from the study indicate that women's groups do not have political agenda; mostly, their goals do not align with any political agenda, although their members accept appointments, and also enjoy government patronage. There was also an indication that there exists a high illiteracy rate among the members of the women's groups and most of them are not aware of existing National or International gender equality laws or affirmative action. Thus, it is difficult to participate in politics and contribute their voices to political issues. The study concludes that the present role played by women's groups at the grassroots level may not be adequate in encouraging more women's participation in politics and in influencing economic development. Thus, there is need to step up their activities and embrace political issues if they are to help more women participate and be relevant in politics. The study therefore suggests that more empowerment programs, especially in the area of decision making and participation in politics, should be targeted at women's groups at the grassroots levels by the governments and all stakeholders as a matter of priority.
近年来，政治领域排斥女性被视为经济发展的主要挫折之一。妇女团体是基层政治的重要支柱；推动更多女性参与基层政治仍面临诸多挑战，这使得她们难以利用现有机会促进经济发展。因此，尼日利亚的妇女团体尚未挖掘出其中更多女性参与政治和增强妇女权能的机会。本研究评估了妇女团体在政治中的作用，确定了她们面临的挑战，并探讨了其对尼日利亚奥孙州经济发展的影响。该研究使用了来自妇女团体论坛和对话的原始数据，这些妇女团体平均由尼日利亚奥孙州十个地方政府辖区的三十名成员组成。此外，还采用了利用现有文献的探索性方法。研究结果表明，妇女团体没有政治议程；大多数情况下，她们的目标与任何政治议程都不一致，尽管其成员会接受任命并享受政府的资助。研究还表明，妇女团体成员的文盲率很高，大多数人不了解现行的国家或国际性别平等法律或平权行动。因此，她们很难参与政治并对政治问题发表意见。该研究得出结论，妇女团体目前在基层所发挥的作用可能不足以鼓励更多女性参与政治并影响经济发展。因此，如果她们要帮助更多女性参与政治并发挥作用，就需要加强活动并关注政治问题。因此，该研究建议，政府和所有利益相关者应优先针对基层妇女团体开展更多赋权项目，特别是在决策和政治参与领域。
