Women Decision Making Essay

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CHAPTER ONE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 1.0 BACKGROUND Majority of women both in developed and developing countries finds themselves in a marginalized group and are yet to enjoy the status and equal opportunity to access the resources and services as compared to their counterparts. The involvement of women in decision making in the society is hampered at different levels including religion and governance where males have the exclusive rights for making decisions in these areas. The presence of discriminatory practices existing in these countries is perpetuated by cultural values and norms which varies from country to country. In Tanzania, the status of women is still at the bottom as majority of them lags behind or left out in the decision making …show more content…

Women themselves are not a homogeneous group; there are major differences between them, based on class, race, ethnicity, cultural background and education. Customary laws allows men to have more power and control over resource and in decision making process, thus making the system undemocratic and patriarchal. The exclusion of women from decision-making bodies limits the possibilities for entrenching the principles of democracy in a society, hindering economic growth and discouraging the attainment of gender equality. If men monopolize the political procedure, passing regulations which affect society at large, the decision-making process does not always balance the interests of the male and female populations (IPU, 2004; …show more content…

Even a quick glance at the present composition of political decision makers in any region provides evidence that women still face numerous obstacles in articulating and shaping their own interests. Various surveys carried out by United Nations in the late 1990s reveals an increase in the gap between the status of men and that of women in most societies. Surveys indicated the growing rate of gender discrimination in recruitment, promotion, salaries and dismissal. The United Nations Statistics indicated that about 1.8 billion people in the world were living in poverty and 70 percent of this population is occupied by women. The gender gap in earnings is registered all over the world where the average wage of a woman is equal to 75 percent of the man’s earnings (excluding an agricultural worker’s

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