Grassroots communities' perceptions relating to extent of control as a pillar of women empowerment in Makhado Municipality of South Africa

Abstract

Empowerment aims at assisting the disadvantaged members of society to take control of their livelihoods. However, questions still arise as to whether women have full control of their lives given the socio-cultural dynamics that are at play in their communities. The study examined the extent to which ‗control‘ was a factor in the empowerment of women in some rural areas of South Africa. A total of 5 924 participants took part in a village-level confirmatory study in which data were collected through questionnaires. The Categorical Data Modelling technique and the pseudo Duncan multiple range procedure were used for data analysis. Significant Interest Group differences were detected (P < 0.10) among the participants‘ responses. Also, significant inter-Ward differences were detected for the perception; women are excellent role models for children and youth. Results showed that much still needed to be done in as far as women‘s control of resources was concerned.