PhD Theses

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Browsing PhD Theses by Author "Esuruku, Robert Senath"

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    Gender roles in household poverty reduction: a case of Pamulu and Julukwe villages in Moyo district in North Western Uganda.
    (University of Dar es Salaam, 2003) Esuruku, Robert Senath
    The focus of this study was to examine gender roles in household poverty reduction. The study was limited to Pamulu and Julukwe villages in Moyo district in North-western Uganda. The findings of this study were drawn from 50 men and 50 women respondents. Four techniques of data collection were used; these included interview, observation, questionnaire and focus group discussions. Data collected was analysed using STATA programme and the results are presented in descriptive form, percentage distribution and cross tabulations. In Pamulu and Julukwe villages, there were gender variations in definition of poverty. Women often described poverty in terms of lack of land, water, inability to raise income, lacking financial and material assistance from children, household food insecurity and poor children's welfare. For men poverty was related to inability to engage in meaningful employment and lack of productive assets, being born to a lazy father, being a casual worker and being widowed. Other indicators of poverty described by communities from Pamulu and Julukwe villages included inaccessibility to social services and poor leadership. These indicators demonstrate that poverty has many facets, which vary according to gender and location. Therefore interventions to reduce poverty must address these variations, but focusing on the root causes of poverty. When monitoring poverty, indicators should address not only the material possessions and income of local people but also social capital such as the ability to work together to achieve common goals. The major causes of household poverty in Pamulu and Julukwe villages in Moyo district included constraints to agriculture, natural calamities like drought, floods and hail storms; poor governance in terms of poor leadership, corruption and bad policies, insecurity; inadequate and costly services especially health care resulting in some people selling their household items to meet medical care. Isolation of Pamulu and Julukwe villages and the Moyo district by the government in terms of unfair distribution of services and inputs also featured and these were related to remoteness and cost barriers. The major effects of household poverty were listed as inability to meet basic needs like food and drugs resulting in death, anti-social behaviour like theft, poor health, alcoholism, domestic violence, failure to access services tax defaulting, increased school dropouts. The top community priority concerns in order to reduce household poverty were provision of quality education, health services and sanitation, information mobilisation, provision of credit services, agricultural extension services, access to rural feeder roads, access to markets, ensuring peace and security and good governance. Involvement of the poor in planning and managing their own resources would be ideal.