Gender Inequality In Zambia

“Women work. Women of all ages and marital statuses – single, married, divorced or widowed – have always worked and will always work.” Laurie Nisonoff (2015)

Although progress has been made over the years to enhance the socio–economic status of women around the world, they still undoubtedly remain among the most disadvantaged and marginalized. As Chant (2007) postulates, the position of women in a particular country can only be understood or analysed against the background of the socio-cultural, political and economic environment in which they live. In the case of Zambia, women form an integral part of, and play significant roles within, the nucleus and extended family as well as the traditional socio-political governance structures of matrilineal

In the Zambian context, it can be defined as deprivation of a long healthy life, educational opportunities, access to resources for a decent standard of living (e.g. income and consumption, housing, health, clean water and sanitation), and lack of freedom to exercise choice and participate in society (Kabeer 2003).

The causes of poverty are too numerous to itemize, but can be categorized into two groups, i.e. internal and external factors. In the case of Zambia, the worsening living conditions of most of the population can be attributed to internal factors which include cultural factors, the failure of structural adjustment programmes to generate the desired economic growth, high inequality, over-dependence of the economy on copper and diseases like HIV/AIDS (JCTR 2013). External factors can be attributed to those forces beyond a country’s control and include declining terms of trade, drought, debt

Since gender issues are concerned with promoting equality between the sexes and improvement in the status of both women and men in society (Chant 2007), there is thus the need for a comprehensive analysis of the problems faced by poverty stricken women. Societal resources and responses to the welfare of these women in Zambia also need to be addressed if the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s) to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger and to promote gender equality and empower women are to be fulfilled.

That being said, there is thus need for adequate and effective programmes to empower families and practical steps to redress the poverty situation that women in Zambia are facing as child poverty, starvation, child illness and general destitution, are all simply an extension of the conditions of their guardians/families. In as much as policy interventions should not be centred solely on the income dimension aspect of poverty, informal activities such as small scale stonecutting/quarrying as livelihood strategy in developing countries should inadvertently be given the importance they