Women's Voice and Agency in Rural Africa

In Africa, women farmers must gain greater access to markets if they are to overcome patriarchy and fulfill their potential as agriculturalists. In spite of the prevailing reality of patriarchy and male domination, many rural women have been able to surmount the obstacles which have prevented the vast majority from becoming successful farmers and marketers. In this article, cases are depicted in which women have overcome barriers and become participants in markets due, in part, to local political action. The women joined organizations, worked together, and expressed voice, making demands and acquiring influence with which they have been able to obtain agricultural services and access to markets. From the description and comparison of the cases, five conditions are identified in which the ability of rural women to participate in markets and politics is enhanced. They are collective action, participation, skills development, interventions by change agents, and influence by women's movements over states

Action (physics · Agency (philosophy · Agriculture · Business · Collective action · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Patriarchy · Political science · Politics · Psychological intervention · Social science · Sociology · Agriculture and Rural Development Research · Gender Studies · Psychology · Tourism, Volunteerism, and Development

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