TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONTENTS PAGES TITLE
PAGE……………………............................................................i
APPROVAL
PAGE…...........................................................................................ii
DECLARATION……………………...................................................................iii
CERTIFICATI……………………………...........................................................iv
DEDICATIO................................................................................................…..…v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT…………………………………………………..........vi
TABLE
OF CONTENTS………………………………………...........................vii
ABSTRACT……………………...…………….....................................………..
viii
CHAPTER ONE
1.0
Introduction 1
1.1
Background of the Study
1.2
Statement of Problem 3
1.3
objectives of the study 4
1.4 Research question 6
1.5
Significance of Study 6
1.6
Historical Background 7
1.7
Definition of the Key Terms
1.8
Limitation of the study 7
CHAPTER TWO
2.0
Literature Review 10
2.5 Gender roles
2.6 Religious practices and culture in
regard to Gender Inequality
2.6 The relationship between Religion,
Gender and Culture
3.1 Theoretical Framework
CHAPTER THREE
3.0 Research Methodology 17
3.1
Research Design 17
3.2
Historical Background of area
3.3
Population 17
3.3
Sources of Data collection 18
3.4
Instrument of Data Collection 19
3.5
Sampling Method and Procedures 19
3.6
Method of Data Analysis 19
CHAPTER FOUR
4.0 Data Presentation and
Analysis 21
4.1
Introduction 21
4.2
Demography data of the respondent 25
CHAPTER FIVE
Summary,
Conclusion and Recommendation 30
5.1
Summary 30
5.2
Conclusion 31
5.3
Recommendation 31
Bibliography
Appendix
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
The traditional practice of widowhood
and property inheritance is as old as human beings. The inevitability of death
in spite of the great strides made in scientific and technological research,
leads us to assert that there is no human society without widows and widowers.
Yearly, there are seven million widows globally (United States Bureau of Statistics,
2008). The increasing number of widows across the world in recent times has
become a social problem. In Nigeria, widowhood is a common phenomenon
attributed to the high and increasing mortality rate (Oyekanmi, 2007). The fact
that females have higher average life expectancy than males and the practice
whereby men marry women younger than themselves likely result in more widows
than widowers in the society.
As Potash (1986:1) opines, “Widows make up about half the
adult female population in Africa”. Even though
this view is not justifiable by available data, one striking feature in most
parts of Nigeria is the fact that until the 1990s, not much research had been
done on widows and their plight as determinable from relevant discourse. Yet,
this is one specific sub-group that should be targeted for intervention,
considering the incidence of depression among members, the socio-economic
setback that the crisis of widowhood brings to them, and the sudden change in
their status (Sesay and Odebiyi, 1998).
A popular Nigerian folklore has it that all enduring
marriages ultimately end with the death of either the husband or wife or both.
However, the challenges and traumatic experience which accompany the death of a
husband tend to be greater than those which accompany the death of a wife
(Oloko, 1997:9). Even though men and women could die prematurely owing to
a number of factors such as ill-health, accidents and wars amongst other
unforeseen circumstances, it is observed from the relevant literature that,
unlike a wife’s death, the death of a husband is culturally challenged in many
African societies. When a husband dies, the ready suspect is the wife. Deaths,
even in circumstances where the causes are natural and explicable, are never
perceived as such. Magico-religious factors and widows’ bewitchment or sorcery
are evoked for the death of the partners (Erinosho, 2000:1). The widespread belief
is that someone must necessarily cause the death of a man and that person is likely to be his
wife. This assertion is corroborated by a popular saying in many societies in
Nigeria that “no man dies naturally, but at the hands of a bewitching wife”.
In many parts of Nigeria, death is often attributed to some
unnatural causes. When a woman dies, it is more often than not taken with
fatalism; even when such a death is queried, the culprit is sought amongst her
contenders (e.g. co-wives or neighbours), and rarely is her husband seen as
being responsible. Instead of suspicion and accusations, the husband receives
more sympathies and support. For instance, in some Yoruba communities, a woman
is arranged to sleep with the man for a night so that he is not haunted by the
spirit of the dead wife. According to Lasebikan (2001:19), a widower is
evidently pitied and consoled genuinely and encouraged out of his situation as early
as possible while arrangement for a substitute is made quickly, because “Opo‘kunrin ki da sun nitori iyawo orun”
(Yoruba). In other words, “A widower does not sleep alone because of the dead
wife’s spirit”. Though the widower experiences emotional trauma at the loss of
a wife, he is usually given more social support in order to cope, and to
eventually re-adjust to a new life. In a polygynous setting, other living
co-wives become a source of succour. A woman is seen as part of her husband’s
property: at death, family members do not often challenge the husband with
respect to her assets and wealth. However, if the marital relationship was
undergoing stress the relatives of the woman might query the husband’s wish to
inherit her property.
Under normal circumstances, a
widow is to be empathized with, and helped out of the psychological valley into
which the unexpected has plunged her. Unfortunately, this is often not the
case. In most Nigerian societies, she is stigmatized as the killer of her
husband, oppressed, suppressed, afflicted, neglected, accused, openly insulted
and consequently made to succumb to widowhood rites on account of customs and
traditions. Usually, the widow’s ordeal begins the very moment her husband
breathes his last.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Most African societies are
patriarchal and a major element of patriarchy is the subservient position of
women and the level of discrimination that accompanies widowhood practices and
property sharing. In the Hausa tradition, when a woman dies, the man is
consoled. If he is a monogamist, a woman is given to accompany him for the
night and within six months or a space of two years the widower remarries. If
he is a polygyny’s, he naturally takes solace in his other living wives. Even
though widowhood is a condition shared by both men and women, differences in
experience along gender lines have made it more of a woman’s problem. While the
man enjoys social support and goes through minimal widowhood rites, the Hausa
woman is not so spared. Lasebikan (2001:19) aptly captures a widow’s situation
in the following statement: “what the Nigerian widow experiences during
widowhood are better imagined than expressed”.
In many parts of Nigeria, death is
often attributed to some unnatural causes. When a woman dies, it is more often
than not taken with fatalism; even when such a death is queried, the culprit is
sought amongst her contenders (e.g. co-wives or neighbours), and rarely is her
husband seen as being responsible. Instead of suspicion and accusations, the
husband receives more sympathies and support. For instance, in some Yoruba
communities, a woman is arranged to sleep with the man for a night so that he
is not haunted by the spirit of the dead wife. According to Lasebikan
(2001:19), a widower is evidently pitied and consoled genuinely and encouraged
out of his situation as early as possible while arrangement for a substitute is
made quickly, because “Opo‘kunrin ki da sun
nitori iyawo orun” (Yoruba). In other words, “A widower does not
sleep alone because of the dead wife’s spirit”. Though the widower experiences
emotional trauma at the loss of a wife, he is usually given more social support
in order to cope, and to eventually re-adjust to a new life.
Widowhood resulting from sudden death
gives no room for a will or other preparations. Thus, property inheritance
becomes a big challenge. For instance, it has been a long standing custom in
most parts of Nigeria, including Hausa land, for women not to inherit property
(Oke, 2001:52).
Women are almost always regarded as
their husband’s property and being themselves property cannot aspire to own
property (Orebiyi, 2002).
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The overall purpose of the study is
to create a conceptual theoretical framework in regard to the understanding of
Gender inequality, Gender roles, religious practices and culture for
development and wellbeing of women in society.
The following are the specific aims
of the study:
1.
To
explain the beliefs of Gender inequality, gender roles, religion and culture
2.
To
determine the situations women face in both
religion and secular institutions in regard
to gender inequality
3.
To
identify the challenges people face in regard
to Gender inequality and religious practices
4.
To
identify methods/measures in addressing
the issue of gender inequality in the society
5.
To
make recommendations in regard to gender inequality, religion
practices and culture
1.4 Research Questions
1.
What
are the beliefs of Gender inequality, gender roles, religion and culture?
2.
What
type of situations do women face in both
religion and secular institutions in regard
to gender inequality?
3.
What
are the challenges people face in regard
to Gender inequality and religious practices?
4.
What
methods/measures can be used to address the issue of gender inequality in the
society?
5.
What
are the recommendations for gender inequality, religion practices and culture?
1.5 Significance of the Study
The study opted to help in studying the main problems in
regard to gender inequality, gender roles, religious practices and culture for
development and wellbeing of women in Nigeria. On the other hand, the study
aimed at identifying the strategies for change in regard to gender inequality
that might be implemented at the institutional, organizational and individual
levels globally. Therefore, the study will contribute to the body of Knowledge
in expanding the understanding of the situation and challenges of women in
relation to gender inequality.
1.6 Limitation of the Study
The findings are to a large extent
founded on previous research written by scholars in the area of gender and development, women and men studies.
Consequently, this study is limited
by the scholars’ understandings and perceptions due to the conduct of secondary
sources. However, since there have been widespread of literature concerning gender inequality, women, and men on each
part of the matter, there is still no complete study incorporating all
secondary literature on this issue. For this reason, this study has adopted the
method of library research in order
to investigate the complex gender issue. But this further means that the
research is restricted to the
findings and analysis from the obtained previous literature, which can as a
matter of fact be a cause of unreliable and misguided facts being presented.
1.7 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE AREA OF STUDY
Jigawa state was created on Tuesday
29th day of August in the year 1991 by the then head of state
general Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida administration. Meanwhile Jigawa was
formally a historical pail of the old Kano state with its headquarters at
Dutse. The state could say it predominately rural and dependent on subsistence
agriculture as well as small scale business out fits in the neighboring state
that is I3auchi, Kano, Katsina and Yobe States.
Dutse meaning “Rock” or mountain got
its name from the hilly rocks which surround the town and cover an approximate
of about five square miles. Dutse also stands on sand dunes (singular-Jigawa
plural Jigayi). The rocks and sand dunes stands some tens of feet’s above the
sea level. Because of security offered by the rocks one finds a high
concentration of people around them.
The
present Dutse town “Garu” was purposely chosen as the settlement, because of
the security aspects given to the populace. it is naturally surrounded by stone
walls giving a narrow passage to the interior thus giving the occupants the
best opportunity of checking and dealing with invaders. Like many parts of
Nigeria, tradition claim that inhibitions of the area now known as “Dutse”
Gadawur came as a result of incident during a hunting expeditions. Dutse is one
of the important town in Hausa land with a long history, dating back to
centuries before the Fulani Jihad of Shehu Othman Danfodio. Dutse is situated
between latitudes 11400 and I I°N and longitudes 900 45E the emirate
comprises of live local government, Birnin Kudu, Kiyawa. Jahun and Dutse with a
1991 population census of 994, 609. It Shares a common boarder with Kano,
Ningi, Jama’re, Katagun, Hadejia and Ringim emirate.
1.7 Definition of the Key Terms
1.8.1 Gender: Gender
refers to the attributes and opportunities associated with being male and
female, and the socio-cultural relationships between women and men, and girls
and boys, as well as the relations between different groups of women and
different groups of men. These
attributes, opportunities and relationships are socially constructed and
learned through socialization processes. According to (Cornell, 2009), gender is a social construct that society uses to
organize itself. It involves social
interaction through which power relations exist. According to Foucault, a
French philosopher (as cited in Balan,
2010), power relations exist between spouses, parents and children, employers
and employees, as well as members of society and political institutions.
1.8.2 Religion: Religion is a system of faith and worship, which
provides adherents with meaning and purpose in their lives. It is one of the
major institutions in society, with almost every human civilization producing a
system of religious belief. Religions may or may not include a belief in a supreme being, but all are concerned
with the transcendent, the spiritual, and with aspects of life beyond the
physical world. Major religions, such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism,
Islam and Judaism are practiced throughout the world, but there are also numerous minor religious groups, and indigenous religions particular to
specific regions. Within each organized religion, one generally finds a large
number of different denominations, sects, and cults, each with their own
interpretations, beliefs and practices.
1.8.3 Culture: Culture is a
complex phenomenon, in terms of which people both form and express their
sense of identity. Although religion
and culture are two separate concepts, there is
a great deal of over-lap between them. Traditional cultural practices
have often found their way into religious systems, while religious beliefs
influence the cultural life of communities. On the other hand, culture has also been an area in which we often find a source of
controversy in the political and
social arena.
1.8.4 Gender inequality: Gender
inequalities can be defined as culturally and socially created differences
between men and women when both sexes do not have the same share in the
decision making and wealth of a society (Ridgeway, 2004). Gender inequality
belongs among the most prevalent forms of social inequality and exists all over
the world, with different effects in different regions. These differences are
primarily due to cultural legacies, historical development, geographic
location, and, last but not least, the religious norms which predominate in society (Inglehart and Norris, 2003).
1.8 Limitation of the study
The thesis is divided into five
chapters. Chapter one gives a brief background of the experiences of women in
regard to gender inequality. Chapter two reviews literature and empirical
evidences in regard to understanding the beliefs of gender inequality, gender
roles, religious practices and culture, the position of women in society in
regard to gender inequality, the challenges of women in regard to gender
inequality and the approach to use in addressing the issues of gender
inequality in society.
The chapter three discuss the methods
and research design used and how data was analyzed. The chapter will also
discuss the materials used for answering the research questions of the study
and show how data was collected and interpreted. Additionally, the fourth
chapter will present the discussion
of the main findings of the research in regard to case studies done by other
scholars. Therefore, chapter five will
conclude with an overview of all the chapters of the research giving a brief
summary of each chapter including the
recommendations in regard to gender
inequality. In chapter four, the study will present the discussion of the main findings of the research in regard to case studies done by other
scholars. The thesis ends with chapter five concluding
with recommendations for future research in
chapter four.
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