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[1Z122] Women’s Participation in Intrahousehold Decision-Making in Primary Education: Cases of Matrilineal Society in Central and Southern Malawi
Keywords:Women's Participation, Intrahousehold Decision-Making, Primary Education, Malawi
Women are typically primary caregivers for children, which puts them in a unique position to influence the well-being of children by investing in their nutrition, health, and education. Evidence from both developing and developed countries has also shown that when women are in control of household resources, they are more likely to act for the benefit of their children. However, previous studies have mainly discussed those relationships and has yet to capture how household decision-making is reached.
The choice of Malawi is motivated by some reasons. Firstly, the average Malawian women’s relative decision-making power is among the lowest in the eastern and southern parts of Africa, well below the average of developing countries. Secondly, Malawi has three marital residences known as patrilocal/virilocal residency (called Chitengwa), matrilocal/uxorilocal residency (called Chikamwini), and neolocal residency that co-exist within the traditional matrilineal inheritance system. Thus, De facto local customs might have different implications for women’s participation in intrahousehold decision-making.
The objective of this study is to investigate how women get involved in intrahousehold decision-making in children’s primary education and examine what circumstances women participate in decision-making across marital residences within matrilineal society in central and southern Malawi. A qualitative approach is utilized based on the framework of the cooperative and conflict model proposed by Amartya Sen. The Triangulation method was adopted and field research was carried out from three dimensions, namely semi-structured interviews, document review, and observation.
The results found that there were different decision-making processes for children’s primary education through women’s bargaining, even if there was a different opinion between wife and husband across matrilocal, patrilocal, and neolocal residences. The study indicates that it is difficult to explain matrilineal society based on education and wealth, and the more important thing is thought to be the deep-rooted norms of female dominance or gender equality.
The choice of Malawi is motivated by some reasons. Firstly, the average Malawian women’s relative decision-making power is among the lowest in the eastern and southern parts of Africa, well below the average of developing countries. Secondly, Malawi has three marital residences known as patrilocal/virilocal residency (called Chitengwa), matrilocal/uxorilocal residency (called Chikamwini), and neolocal residency that co-exist within the traditional matrilineal inheritance system. Thus, De facto local customs might have different implications for women’s participation in intrahousehold decision-making.
The objective of this study is to investigate how women get involved in intrahousehold decision-making in children’s primary education and examine what circumstances women participate in decision-making across marital residences within matrilineal society in central and southern Malawi. A qualitative approach is utilized based on the framework of the cooperative and conflict model proposed by Amartya Sen. The Triangulation method was adopted and field research was carried out from three dimensions, namely semi-structured interviews, document review, and observation.
The results found that there were different decision-making processes for children’s primary education through women’s bargaining, even if there was a different opinion between wife and husband across matrilocal, patrilocal, and neolocal residences. The study indicates that it is difficult to explain matrilineal society based on education and wealth, and the more important thing is thought to be the deep-rooted norms of female dominance or gender equality.
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