Girl-Child Empowerment and Socio-Economic Welfare in Urban Southwestern Uganda: A case study of Kanungu Town Council, Kanungu District.
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Date
2016
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Publisher
Kabale University
Abstract
The study aimed at establishing the nature of socio-economic welfare of girl-child empowerment interventions in urban Kanungu District through a case study of Kanungu Town Council. More specifically, it intended to identify the forms of girl-child empowerment in Kanungu Town Council from 2005 to 2015, to establish the extent to which girl-child empowerment has improved the socio-economic welfare in Kanungu Town Council from 2005 to 2015, to identify and explain the challenges faced by stakeholders in their efforts to empower the girl-child in Kanungu Town Council, and to generate strategies for enhanced girl-child empowerment in Kanungu Town Council. The study adopted a case study research design using a cross-sectional survey. The study population was composed of 15,138 people. Out of the sampled population, the sample size included 332 respondents was chosen. Systematic random sampling and the Morgan and Krejcie (1970) techniques were used to select respondents. Data collection methods included; interviews, questionnaire administration, focus group discussions and documentary review. Data was analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively whereby quantitative data were entered in EPIDATA version 10 and then exported to excel for analysis. The study found out that forms of girl-child empowerment in Kanungu Town Council included; access to education, reproductive health services and income generating. In addition, it was found out that, the performance of girl-child interventions included formal education for girls through universal primary and secondary education has enabled them to advance their education career, being aware of family planning services. Challenges faced by stakeholders in their efforts to empower the girl-child included; poverty, negative cultural norms, ignorance and traditional gender roles while on the strategies for enhanced girl-child in Kanungu Town Council, it was found out that programmes have been introduced to promote girl-child through formal education. The study concluded that, the town council had been implementing interventions that sought to empower the girl-child and improve her welfare and these included legal framework and policies, and access to education. However, there were still challenges hindering girl-child empowerment and these included early marriages, teenage pregnancy and gender based distribution of domestic work. The study recommended that the town council should continue to promote programmes
That lead to empowerment of the girl-child.
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Keywords
Girl-Child Empowerment, Socio-Economic Welfare