THE IMPACT OF PRICE REFORM ON THE HEALTH AND PRODUCTIVITY OF RURAL WOMEN IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

The primary aim of the study is to examine the impact which price reform occasioned by the need for economic liberization has had an the health and productivity of rural women in Nigeria. The decision to focus on rural women rests on the conviction that they represent a vital productive and reproductive force in the country. Owing to the relative paucity of empirical data on the effect of price reform on this category of citizens, the study is thus an exploratory one which utilized a 'sample survey: as its research design. Sample for the study was drawn from 20 rural communities chosen from the two south western states of Ogun and Osun. In all, 1,235 women were interviewed. In terms of the social characteristics of the sample, they were evenly spread over the productive ages, however with a significant proportion above the age of 30 years. Most of them had from three to five children and lived in fairly large family groups with other wives and other extended family members. They were largely poorly educated with more than half having no formal education at all. The vast majority #of the sampIe was engaged in agriculture . related economic activities especially the production and processing of food crops which they combine with marketing.