Assessment of Women’s Participation in Local Government Decision Making Bodies: A Case Study in Oromia Regional State, Jimma City Ethiopia

Abstract

This study was aim to investigate women’s participation in local government decision-making bodies in a Case Study in Oromia National Regional State, Jimma town Ethiopia. To address this data was collected through questionnaires and interviews. The main sections seen in this study are the status of women in decision-making in local government; the contributions of local government to empower women in decision-making bodies; the challenges that women face to participate in local government decision-making bodies. To conduct this study the researcher used a descriptive research design. Data was collected through questionnaires and interviews and the collected data were analyzed in terms of frequency and percentages. The major findings indicate that the status of women in decision-making in local government is low and below expected, and there is no full involvement of women in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security in decision-making in local government under the study area and there is no equal representation of women and men in decision making at the local government of the study area. Based on the contributions of local government to empower women in decision-making bodies, findings of the study reveal that local government can’t ensure women’s equal access to and full participation in decision-making, and the local government is unable to increase women’s capacity to participate in decision-making, a local government unable to engage women in decision making institutions such as in court by participating in bureaucracies, there is no assessing and grading the equal participation of women and men in decision making at local government and there is also no training regard to skills development given to women from local government. The findings reveal that several challenges faced by women such as poor public relations, women have problems with time management, an absence of enabling environment, and women being too busy with domestic chores that challenge them to participate in decision-making in local government. Based on the findings of the study the researcher forwarded the recommendations as Jimma town administration must promote gender mainstreaming as the main strategy recommended by the national policy of Ethiopia, and develop accountability among staff to promote gender equality; it should be one of the core issues in performance appraisal. Jimma town administration women’s affairs office in collaboration with the SARDP gender adviser should develop and implement training programs on gender mainstreaming to enable government staff, to identify the plan and implement a gender-sensitive project focused on issues impeding women’s participation in decision-making bodies.