Gender Analysis of Decision Making on Maternal Health Care among Rural Farmers in Southwestern Nigeria: Implications for Food Security
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Abstract
Safe childbirth is crucial to farmers’ productivity and food security as farm labour plays a pivotal role for farming in
most rural communities. Analysing gender roles on maternal health care (MHC) decision is of major concern in ensuring
safe motherhood and poverty reduction in rural homes. Therefore, this study analysed gender concerns of MHC among
rural farmers. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 124 respondents for the study; data were collected using
structured interview schedule, Focus Group Discussion, descriptive and inferential statistics. Respondents (χ = 29 years)
were in their youthful and procreating stage with average family size of 4 members. Husbands (64.5%) mainly decided the
MHC utilised for childbirth. More females (54.8%) belonged to cooperative society. About (56.5%) of males and females
(53.2%), respectively were crop producers having average monthly earning of #19,000. Most predicating factors to MHC
decision were family tradition ( χ= 2.21) and social capital (χ = 2.18). Males (61.3%) had high level of MHC decision
unlike the females (54.8%) with low contribution to MHC decision. Monthly income (r=0.521), responsibility for decision
making (r=0.668) were significantly related to respondents decision on MHC. There was a significant difference in the
level of decision making between males and females (t=5.28, df =31). Hence, it is recommended that non-governmental
organisation should collaborate with the government to aggressively sensitise rural communities on safe motherhood and
men should sufficiently empower women to contribute and participate actively in decisions on maternal health care in rural
families for sustainable food production and supply.
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