Gender Access Gap: Factors Affecting Gender Disparity In
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University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh GENDER ACCESS GAP: FACTORS AFFECTING GENDER DISPARITY IN ENROLMENT AND ATTENDANCE IN BASIC SCHOOLS IN THE NORTHERN REGION OF GHANA BY ELIASU ALHASSAN 10175417 THIS THESIS IS SUBMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY SOCIOLOGY DEGREE JULY, 2013 University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DECLARATION I, Eliasu Alhassan, hereby declare that this Doctor of Philosophy thesis is my own work produced from the study I undertook in the Northern Region of Ghana. It has not been previously submitted for examination to another University or to any department within the University of Ghana, Legon. I was supervised by Professor Clara Fayorsey, Professor Steve Tonah of the Department of Sociology, University of Ghana, Legon and Dr. Seidu Al- hassan of the Institute for Continuing Education and Interdisciplinary Research, University for Development Studies, Tamale. ……………………………………..... ELIASU ALHASSAN (STUDENT) DATE: …………………………… SUPERVISORS ………………………………… …………………………………… PROFESSOR CLARA FAYORSEY PROFESSOR STEVE TONAH (PRINCIPAL SUPERVISOR) (SUPERVISOR) DATE ………………………….… DATE ……………….……….. ……………………………………. DR. SEIDU AL-HASSAN (SUPERVISOR) DATE ……………………… i University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh DEDICATION I dedicate this thesis to my parents, the late Alhaji Alhassan and Mattah Tahiru Jiraso and to all my lovely children. May God the Almighty bless all of them. ii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ACKNOWLEDGEMENT My first and foremost thanks go to the Almighty God for giving me the courage, confidence and guidance during the writing of this thesis. In the midst of all the difficulties I encountered during the production of this work, I still deem it necessary to single out some persons who have helped in diverse ways for my dream to become a reality. I wish to sincerely thank Professor Clara Fayorsey of the Department of Sociology, University of Ghana, Legon, not for only guiding me throughout the thesis but also for making sure that I complete the thesis on schedule. I am grateful to her for the patience and the enthusiasm she showed throughout the writing of the thesis. May God the Almighty reward her and give her long life. I am also very grateful to Professor Steve Tonah of the Department of Sociology, University of Ghana, Legon not for only supervising me throughout the work but also for the patience and encouragement he gave me when the going was tough. May the Almighty God bless him and guide him throughout his endeavours. Another individual who was of great assistance to me was Dr. Seidu Al-hassan of the Institute for Continuing Education and Interdisciplinary Research, University for Development Studies, Tamale. I would like to thank him very much for his patience and the dedication he showed in the course of writing this thesis and also guiding me throughout the work. May God the Almighty bless him. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Alhassan Andani of the University for Development Studies for his assistance during the production of this thesis and all the authors and publishers whose books, articles and dissertations I have read relevant to this thesis. Finally, I thank my wife Madam Eliasu Sahalatu for her patience and understanding in the course of pursuing the PhD programme and the encouragement she gave me during iii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh the difficult times. If readers see anything valuable in this thesis, credit should be given to the persons I acknowledged above. Any shortcomings of the thesis are solely my responsibility because conducting such a study in the Northern Region was not without difficulties. If others can build upon my shortcomings and what I have left out, I would be most grateful. iv University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh ABBREVIATIONS AAG Action Aid Ghana AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome BESIP Basic Education Improvement Plan CAMFED Campaign for Female Education ECLSPP Eastern Corridor Livelihood Security Promotion Programme EFA Education for All FCUBE Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education GER Gross Enrolment Rate GES Ghana Education Service GLSS Ghana Living Standard Survey GPI Gender Parity Index GPRS Ghana Poverty Reduction Strategy GSS Ghana Statistical Service HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus ILO International Labour Organsation IMF International Monetary Fund JHS Junior High School MDG Millennium Development Goal MOE Ministry of Education NAR Net Admission Rate NER Net Enrolment Rate v University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh NGO Non Governmental Organisation OLS Ordinary Least Square PTA Parent Teacher Association PWD Persons with Disability SEND Social Enterprise Development SfL School for life SFP School Feeding Programme SHS Senior High School SMC School Management Committee SPIP School Performance Improvement Plan UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNESCO United Nations, Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNO United Nations Organization WEAD World Declaration of Education for All WFP World Food Programme vi University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION..................................................................................................................... i DEDICATION........................................................................................................................ ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .................................................................................................... iii ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................................ v TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................... vii LISTS OF FIGURES AND CHARTS................................................................................ xii LISTS OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ xiii ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER ONE .................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Background of the Study ................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Rationale for the Study ...................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Problem Statement ............................................................................................................. 5 1.4 Objectives of the Study ...................................................................................................... 8 1.5 Justification of the Study ................................................................................................... 9 1.6 Organisation of the Study ................................................................................................ 10 CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................. 15 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 15 2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 15 2.2 Relevance of Basic Education ......................................................................................... 16 2.3 Socio-Economic Challenges ............................................................................................ 20 2.4. Socio-Cultural and Contextual Challenges ..................................................................... 31 CHAPTER THREE ............................................................................................................. 54 PROFILE OF THE STUDY AREA: NORTHERN REGION OF GHANA .................. 54 3.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 54 3.2 Geography and Climatic Conditions ................................................................................ 54 vii University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh 3.3 The world View of the People of the Northern Region ................................................... 56 3.4 Kinship and Marriage and Political System..................................................................... 59 3.5 Economic Characteristics................................................................................................. 61 3.6 Educational Profile of the Northern Region .................................................................... 62 CHAPTER FOUR ................................................................................................................ 70 METHODOLOGY .............................................................................................................. 70 4.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 70 4.2 Research Design and Methods ......................................................................................... 70 4.3 Sampling Strategy ...........................................................................................................