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Ethiopia The Role of Women
There have been few studies concerning women in Ethiopia,
but many observers have commented on the physical hardship
that Ethiopian women experience throughout their lives. Such
hardship involves carrying loads over long distances,
grinding corn manually, working in the homestead, raising
children, and cooking. Ethiopian women traditionally have
suffered sociocultural and economic discrimination and have
had fewer opportunities than men for personal growth,
education, and employment. Even the civil code affirmed the
woman's inferior position, and such rights as ownership of
property and inheritance varied from one ethnic group to
another.
As in other traditional societies, a woman's worth is
measured in terms of her role as a mother and wife. Over 85
percent of Ethiopian women reside in rural areas, where
peasant families are engaged primarily in subsistence
agriculture. Rural women are integrated into the rural
economy, which is basically labor intensive and which exacts
a heavy physical toll on all, including children. The
revolution had little impact on the lives of rural women.
Land reform did not change their subordinate status, which
was based on deep-rooted traditional values and beliefs. An
improvement in economic conditions would improve the
standard of living of women, but real change would require a
transformation of the attitudes of governments and men
regarding women.
There have been some changes for women in urban areas,
where education, health care, and employment outside the
home have become more available. Although a few women with
higher education have found professional employment, most
hold low-paying jobs. About 40 percent of employed women in
urban areas worked in the service sector, mainly in hotels,
restaurants, and bars, according to a 1976 government
survey. Employment in production and related areas (such as
textiles and food processing) accounted for 25 percent of
the female work force, followed by sales, which accounted
for about 11 percent. The survey also showed that women
factory workers in Addis Ababa earned about a quarter of the
wages men earned for the same type of work. These
differences existed despite a 1975 proclamation stipulating
equal pay for equal work for men and women.
Following the revolution, women made some gains in economic
and political areas. The Revolutionary Ethiopia Women's
Association (REWA), which claimed a membership of over 5
million, took an active part in educating women. It
encouraged the creation of women's organizations in
factories, local associations, and in the civil service.
Some women participated in local organizations and in
peasant associations and kebeles. However, the role of women
was limited at the national level. In 1984, for example, the
government selected only one woman as a full member of the
Central Committee of the WPE. Of the 2,000 delegates who
attended the WPE's inaugural congress in 1984, only 6
percent were women.
On a more positive note, the Mengistu regime could claim
success in increasing literacy among women (see
Literacy,
this ch.). The enrollment of women in primary and secondary
schools increased from about 32 percent in 1974/75 to 39
percent in 1985/86, although the rate of enrollment of urban
women far exceeded the rate for rural women.
Data as of 1991
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