Many individuals whom I have met throughout the duration of my project have asked me why the manual is designed to assist Kenyan women. Why are women the target audience and beneficiaries of the manual?
Below I explain the role of women workers in Kenya to justify why educational opportunities and resources, such as the manual, are especially important for this segment of the population.
In Kenya, the labor market is made up of 11.4 million workers. Like many developing countries, the majority of these workers, an estimated 9.6 million Kenyans, earn a living in the informal economy. [1] The informal economy, defined as small scale, unregistered, unregulated and unprotected income-earning activities (11-12) [2], is the largest sector of employment that supports millions of Kenyan families, particularly in urban areas. Thus, even with an active informal economy, employment security is rare and about 40% of Kenyans are unemployed. [3]
Informal employment is particularly important to the female workers of Kenya. In fact, 60% of workers in the Kenyan informal economy are women (21). [4] Men in Kenya dominate the formal economy, and even if women participate the majority are employed in the service industry that are low income paying jobs (12). [5] Unfortunately, even with the increase of women employment in the informal sector, “the link between working in the informal economy and being poor…is stronger for women than for men” (14).[6]
Such a finding could be attributed to the fact that more than half of women workers in the informal economy are wage workers rather than self employed (21). [7] Those that are employed through operating their own small and medium sized enterprises hire less employees and earn almost half as much as men who run comparable businesses (13). [8] Even as women are entering into employment, their “nonmarket activities” remain consistent adding to their daily work load, but such work is not accounted for within daily productivity values. Thus, women are working harder and longer hours more than ever before, but gaining less (13). [9]
Such a finding could be attributed to the fact that more than half of women workers in the informal economy are wage workers rather than self employed (21). [7] Those that are employed through operating their own small and medium sized enterprises hire less employees and earn almost half as much as men who run comparable businesses (13). [8] Even as women are entering into employment, their “nonmarket activities” remain consistent adding to their daily work load, but such work is not accounted for within daily productivity values. Thus, women are working harder and longer hours more than ever before, but gaining less (13). [9]
As Kenya has unequal opportunities in both the formal and informal economies for females, educational resources for Kenyan women are important as they face many barriers to start and build businesses. As financial exclusion of women has decreased with the expansion of Kenyan microfinance industry, women also need to protect themselves with knowledge of such programs to ensure that they can make an informed decision whether to participate or not participate in microfinance. It is suggested by a publication of the World Bank that increasing access to education among women can led to Kenyan GDP growth (10). [10]
[1] [3] [4] The United States of America. The Central Intelligence Agency. "Kenya." The World Fact Book. STAT-USA. 2011. Accessed July 26, 2011. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ke.html
[2] [6] [7] The International Labor Organization. "Women and Men in the Informal Economy: A Statistical Picture.” Geneva: International Labor Office, 2002. Accessed July 26, 2011. www.ilo.org/public/libdoc/ilo/2002/102B09_139_engl.pdf
[5] [8] [9] [10] Ellis, Amanda. Gender and Economic Growth in Kenya: Unleashing the Power of Women. Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007.
No comments:
Post a Comment