Capacity building for sustainable socio-economic development of rural women in coconut oil processing in the Nzema East district

Abstract

The focus on capacity building for women became a conventional practice in the late 1970s in much of Africa. Although various interventions have tackled this aspect in one form or the other, there is still much to be done in building the capacity of women in micro enterprises to reduce poverty and for empowerment. This study determined capacity building for rural women in micro enterprises and their socio-economic development. The sample for the study was selected from women who produce coconut oil in Nzema East District of the Western Region, Ghana. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 5 coconut oil production communities. One hundred and sixty-six (166) respondents were selected from the 5 groups. In-depth interviewing was adopted to elicit information on respondents. Generally, the study revealed capacity building programmes for the women in carrying out their micro enterprises that promote their socio-economic status should be encouraged. This is because income generating activities have been beneficial to the women and their households. In addition, women see their income generating activities as their means of survival, so policies should be directed towards building their capacities on sustainable basis.