Gender, culture, and inequality in Ghana: An examination of sociocultural determinants of gender disparity

Abstract

The gender gaps that exist in education, income, poverty, access to health and wealth, inheritance, and household decision-making has been reported widely in Ghana and in Africa. There is copious evidence which suggests that while these differences are found in all societies, in developing countries these gender gaps are biggest with associated greater negative impact on women. In Ghana for example, gender gaps have been reported in access to health, education, employment opportunities, rights, and inheritance. The focus of this chapter is threefold: first, we examined gender gaps and disparity in education, poverty, health, and political participation and decision-making. Second, we explored major interventions that have been implemented in Ghana and examined the successes and failures of these programs in addressing the gender disparity. Finally, we discussed the factors that account for the failures of some of these interventions such as culture, patriarchy, economic instability, and poverty. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015.