Gender Inequality in Basic Education in

the Northern Region of Ghana: Household

and Contextual Factors in Perspectives

Eliasu Alhassan
Department of Social Political & Historical Studies
University for Development Studies
Email: [email protected]
and

Felicia Safoa Odame

Department of Social Political & Historical Studies
University for Development Studies
Email: [email protected]
DOI//http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/gjdsv12i1&2.8

Abstract
The Government of Ghana has implemented a number of policies towards achieving quality and
gender equality in basic schools in Ghana. These policies include the School Feeding Programme,
Capitation Grant and recently the provision of Free School Uniform to pupils in basic schools.
This paper examines household factors as well as contextual factors that militate against the
effort of government in achieving quality and gender equality in enrolment and attendance in
basic schools in the the Northern Region of Ghana. Household questionnaire, interview guides
were used to obtain the primary data while the secondary data were sourced via the internet,
published dissertations and journals. Socio-economic factors such as the high cost associated
with girls’ education, availability of household resources, poverty and high number of market
days served as barriers to gender equality in basic education in the Northern Region of Ghana.
Socio-cultural practices such as boy child preference, polygyny, fostering, early marriage,
menstruation and attendance at festival celebrations are key factors militating against quality
and gender equality in basic schools in the region. Vigorous sensitization on the negative effects
of these socio-cultural factors by the government and NGOs and the removal of all forms of levies
in basic schools as well as strict enforcement of the Free Compulsory Basic Education policy by the
government would go a long way to improve access to basic education in the Northern Region of
Ghana.

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Keywords: Equality, Basic Education, Gender, Enrolment, Attendance

INTRODUCTION
Gender equality, quality and the effects of socio economic and socio cultural differences
in the provision of learning opportunities are some of the major concerns in education
development in many developing countries. One particular concern is unequal or the
disadvantaged position of women as compared to men and by extension girls as compared
to boys in basic education participation in terms of enrolment and school attendance.
According to the goals of Education for All (EFA) and Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs), many countries were faced with challenges of eliminating gender inequality in
basic education by 2010 and are still not sure of achieving gender equality in enrolment
and attendance in basic education by 2015 (UN Report, 2012).

To achieve this target, informed strategies to improve the participation of both male and
female citizens in various socioeconomic activities including education are necessary.
In most developing countries, gender differentials in education are more pronounced in
terms of participation and internal efficiency and in cognitive performance with girls
being the most affected. While enrolment rates to some extent do not differ greatly, more
boys than girls complete schooling, especially at the basic school (Kane, 2004).

The impact of gender and home-based factors on enrolment and attendance cannot be
over emphasized. Policy initiatives towards achieving gender equality in enrolment and
attendance have included abolition of all forms of fees charged at the basic levels. When
Kenya abolished all fees at the primary level, the primary gross enrolment reached 7.2
million pupils (48.6% female) having risen from 5.4 million pupils in 1989 to 56.3% in
2010. Interventions aimed at promoting girls education include taking affirmative action
in support of girl-child education; expansion and improvement of classrooms, boarding
facilities and water and sanitation facilities to create conducive and gender responsive
environments particularly in arid and semi-arid lands and providing support to non-
formal education institutions ( UN Report, 2012).

Despite the impressive gains in access to education, issues of gender equality and
participation in enrolment and attendance, progression and performance at the basic
education level require further analysis. Customs and circumstance at home lead to a
range of cultural practices which cause differences in schooling outcomes. For instance, at
the time of the 2010 population census in Ghana, 36 percent of all males aged 6 and above
were attending school compared to 38 percent of females (GSS, 2012). More glaring gender
differences were observed among the population who never attended school. Female
participation in education dropped from 38 in 2010 to 24 percent in 2012, while that of
males dropped from 18 percent in 2010 to 14 percent in 2012 (GSS, 2012).The gender gap
had also narrowed during these years implying that participation rates are close to gender
equality. Therefore, it is important to understand the underlying factors contributing
to the differences (related to gender and socio-economic as well as socio-cultural factors
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affecting schooling especially at the basic level) in order to provide reliable data and
empirical evidence for policy formulation (Allen, 1994).

The paper is structured around five thematic areas one of which is the introduction
which discusses the Millennium Development Goals and the goals of Education for All
(EFA) to achieve gender parity in enrolment and attendance by 2015. Theoretical bases
for gender inequality especially, the equity and equality perspectives by the United
Nations Organizations are examined. The paper further explains the methodology of the
study thus, the processes and procedures involved in sampling data collection and data
handling. The key findings and discussions of the socio-cultural and contextual challenges
of gender equality in basic schools are discussed. The socio-economic challenges as well as
the conclusion and recommendations are discussed in the tail end of the paper.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
International debates and practices on gender equality in basic education during the
past decade have crystallized into two different mutually complementary perspectives:
the equity perspective and the equality perspective. The difference according to the UNO
(2012) is that while the equity perspectives deals with the process of being fair to women
and to ensure fairness, strategies and measures must often be available to compensate
women’s historical and social disadvantage that prevent women and men from otherwise
operating on a level playing field. Gender equality perspective requires equal enjoyment by
women and men of social-value goods, access, opportunities, resources and rewards. The
current paper concentrates on the equality perspective.

The equality perspective goes beyond access and quality issues in basic education and
beyond training women for employment and income generation opportunities. It
recognizes that gender is a socio-cultural construct and underscores the social relations
between men and women in which women are systematically subordinated. Advocates of
education for gender equality argue that structural transformations are needed in order to
end discriminatory practices based on gender. Basic education for equality thus entails the
necessity of empowering women by giving them a range of socio-cultural competencies
and tools beyond the narrow conceptualization of reading and writing skills. According
to diverse studies undertaken by Hamburg (2012), empowerment in education involves
several dimensions: a cognitive dimension or women’s awareness and understanding of
their conditions and causes of subordination. A psychological dimension, or women’s self-
confidence and self-esteem; an economic dimension or women’s ability to access resources
to engage in productive activities and to take autonomous decisions and a political
dimension or women’s ability to set their own agenda to negotiate, lead and organize for
challenging oppression and changing conditions (OXFAM, 2005).

Education for gender equality aims to transform gender relations so that both women and
men enjoy the same opportunities to achieve their potential. The challenge of achieving
quality and gender equality raises important questions about the education of boys and
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men as well as girls and women. The attitudes and behaviour of boys and men along with
girls and women within the larger societal context need to be examined to change gender
bias and stereotyped view on the roles of men and women. Being committed to promoting
gender equality, UNESCO (2012) did not accept the arguments that insist on a male-female
dichotomy – attributing characteristics to women and men by virtue of their sex. UNESCO
believes that this line of argumentation is non-productive and does not lead the way
forward to gender equality. Social structures that reproduce gender inequality should be
addressed by acknowledging the complexity of social and cultural norms.

Roemer (1998) argued that gender bias and sexist stereotypes are internalized by boys
and men, and girls and women alike through socialization process. Thus social structures
that uphold gender inequality continue to exist. The basic education setting must
provide an enabling environment to address and prevent gender-biased attitudes and
practices from taking hold. Basic education that promotes gender equality requires a
holistic gender-sensitive approach that upholds mutual respect between boys and girls
and between men and women. The situations of both boys and girls must be addressed
through gender analysis that examines both the realities and causes of inequalities. The
responses for addressing inequality may vary in different contexts. However, through
basic education, equitable and creative solutions must be sought to bring girls and
women to an equal playing field with boys and men and to realize an all-inclusive learning
and social system. Schleicher (2007) noted that gender equality approach takes into
consideration the fact that women do not constitute a homogeneous population group
and that there are discriminatory social and economic elements within the category of
women in the households. Addressing questions of poverty are an intrinsic element of
gender equality in basic education.

Dolphyne (1991) argued that all these forms of inequalities in the society have much to
do with Antonio Gramsci’s theory of hegemony that is a large number of people agree to
believe the same things and that they agree not because they are coerced or tortured into
it but because their consent is mobilized. In other words, they come to believe through
socialization that their particular system especially inequality among individuals and
among men and women is natural and the only way to live and that they will defend
their cultural way of living to the death. The beliefs of a culture always operate to suit the
interests of those who hold power. However, when one idea no longer serves an economic
or social purpose that suits the powerful the belief changes therefore the inequality
among males and females benefit those in power positions in the society.

Cultural hegemony again works very much on Parson’s theory of functionalism and
Durkheim’s notion of social facts. What this means is that Parson’s binary system of
gender that is male-female dichotomy serves a function in the society. It is the principle
that keeps society in order and while it may not be a natural law it has certainly become a
social fact – beliefs that the majority of people in the society believe to be true. Durkheim
introduced the notion that social facts became just as natural laws; for example, gravity
kept us anchored to the earth is a natural law but all people are automatically masculine

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or feminine depending on their genitalia is a social fact. The sky is blue is a natural law and
all people will be heterosexual based on the genitals they are born with remains a social
facts. Hegemony is the only thing perpetuating them therefore inequality in the society is
a natural law hence it is beyond human control.

Furthermore, the culture – nature and nature – nurture debates seem to continue in
the society today. The perceptions that gender inequality caused by our culture and
being a natural phenomenon still continue in the society. It has never been satisfactorily
reconciled that our society can say with pride that we have defeated nature and condemns
other people for being unnatural by defying notions of gender inequality.

METHODOLOGY
The population of the Northern Region was 2,479,461 according to the Ghana Statistical
Service (2012). Five cases from the major ethnic groups in the region (Dagomba,
Mamprusi, Gonja, Nanumba and Konkomba would have been enough for fair
representation but the law of representation states that the larger the sampling size the
more representative it is in the population (Mugender & Mugender, 1999).

The study was descriptive in nature. This allowed the use of data to explain household
as well as contextual factors affecting gender inequality in basic schools in the Northern
Region of Ghana. Probability and non-probability sampling techniques were used the
probability techniques included simple random sampling which was used to select
the districts and in many instances the communities. The non-probability techniques
included purposive sampling which was used to select households with both male and
female children while convenient sampling was used to select the headteachers and
children out of school. Household heads, school pupils and headteachers were the target
population and data were sourced from these categories of respondents through the use
of semi-structured interview guides and questionnaires.

The study used secondary data from published dissertations, journals and the internet.
In all a total of two hundred and forty-eight questionnaires were used and these included
one hundred and fifty two household heads and ninety-six school pupils. The classes
were put into clusters and with the assistance of the headteachers these pupils were
interviewed. Schools were purposively selected including schools which benefit from
the School Feeding Programme and thirty headteachers of the selected schools were
interviewed.Qualitative and quantitative data were obtained and in many instances the
qualitative data were organised in to themes and analysed while percentages and charts
were used to analyse the quantitative data with the help of the Statistical Package for
Social Scientists (SPSS).

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FINDINGS

Household and Contextual Challenges

The composition of households in the Northern Region remains largely traditional
and the families are extended families except in Christian households where nuclear
families dominate even among the urban dwellers. Males dominated the responses in
the households. They are the heads of their families and the decision to send children to
school or withdraw them from school is usually taken by men. Female-headed households
do exist in the region. These heads were seen mostly from Savelugu-Nanton District, East
Gonja and Tamale Metropolis. Households in which both spouses live, men are the heads
of the families but where the husband is not present the mature male son becomes the
head of the family. Female-headed households are uncommon in the region and when it
comes to the enrolment of their children they take the decision in favour of the male child
which widens the gender inequality gap in enrolment. The study found that Christian
households enrolled both their male and female children in school and allows them
to attend school. Out of six Christian households visited five households had all their
children in school except one household head who explained that his children are not in
school because of his inability to pay fees that are charged by the school authorities. It
was noted that girl-child education is part of the Christian faith and that Christianity was
introduced in Ghana alongside education. Therefore, there is no point in Christian’s life
where Christian parents will deny their daughters education.

Islam does not discourage girls’ education, it only prefers the male children to be more
educated than the female children because of the fact that women marry out of the
households, therefore investing more in them to acquire higher education means
investing in the prospective husband. Out of the a hundred and six households visited
ninety household heads had their children enrolled in school and sixteen household heads
did not enrol their girls in school. Muslims prefer to educate the male-child rather than
the female-child. African Traditional Religion (ATR) has seen the need to educate female
children in the Ghanaian society today. Although, formal education in the past was seen
as a threat to the beliefs and practices of the African Traditional Religion (ATR) in the
Northern Region of Ghana but this threat is now fading away. This was evidenced when
out of forty traditional households only three households did not have their children
in school. It was again noted that boys were enrolled in school and allowed to attend
more than girls. The question of inequality between the girl-child and the boy-child in
enrolment and attendance in education should not even arise in African Traditional
Religion at all (ATR), being the oldest religion in Ghana, men and women had their roles to
play in the society and that formal education for girls is a necessary evil (Murshid, 1996).

Murshid (1996) argued that despite the broadly equalizing influence of recent
development on educational attainment of boys and girls, a number of historical
influences can result in the persistent inequality in enrolment and attendance in basic
education in Christianity, Islam and ATR. The authors explained that higher educational

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attainment among Christians have been attributed to the acceptance of secular education
while majority of the Muslims still prefer education in Arabic because Arabic education
started before secular education. These divergent historical paths in secular education
have also led to the Christians being better represented in service-sector occupations such
judiciary services, parliamentary services and industrial services.

In many districts in the Northern Region such as Tamale,Yendi, Damongo Gushegu

and Bole, Arabic schools still exist, especially in the urban and the peri-urban areas
where many parents still enrol their girls and make a lot of investments in the growth
of “madrasahs” (Arabic schools) as a way of increasing access to basic school among the
disadvantage Muslims. Though, the inequality in school enrolment still exists in these
schools the trend has changed as the current study revealed. More girls are now being
enrolled at the primary school level than boys in the Arabic schools but more males are
allowed to pursue higher education than the females. The situation is different at the JHS
level where the inequality in enrolment is still in favour of the boys as reported by the
Federation of Women Educationist (2001).

There was a wide variation in the proportion of the population who are married and
those unmarried in the region. Marital statuses of the respondents were measured on the
nominal scale specifying the categories of the statuses and the sampling was purposive.
This may not reflect exactly what pertains in other districts because the questions were
restricted to only households with both male and female children. Those who were
married were more than those who were not married. The unmarried but with children
were not respected in their communities as compared to the married with children,
especially when it comes to decision making in the communities. Children of those who
were not legally married were teased in school which caused some parents to withdraw
their children from school. Both girls and boys were affected; but the girls were affected
more than the boys.

Marriage is an important institution and cherished by the people of the Northern Region
of Ghana. When couples are legally married to each other it has positive effects on their
children schooling, especially girls schooling. Those who are not legally married in the
region are unhappy about their situation; their children too are unhappy in schools which
sometimes discourage the children from attending school regularly in the Northern
Region of Ghana.

The 1985 Marriage Ordinance Act 127 of Ghana makes the legal age for marriage as 18
for girls and 21 for boys respectively .The amendment to this act 1998 ( Act 560) which
was in line with the 19992 constitution of Ghana placed the minimum age for marriage
of all categories to 18 years. Religious and customary practices in Northern Region of
Ghana lead to both early betrothal that is at birth and marriage of girls before eighteen
years. Where it can be proven that the girl’s consent to an early customary or religious
marriage was absent; a prosecution for forcible marriage can be carried out. Many females
do not know that they have the right to refuse early marriage; many feel compelled to

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cohabit with a man by circumstances such as poverty. Public education is geared towards
educating families about the health hazards of early marriage to the girls and encouraging
parents/guardians to allow girls to go to school and spend more years in school before
marrying and starting families Junge (1988) cited in Odaga and Haneveld (1995). Girls’
marrying before the age of sixteen years is a common practice in the region as compared
to the boys, and this negatively affects girls’ school attendance more than the boys. In
almost all the rural areas, girls and boys who were 16 years were seen with their spouses.
Indeed, some girls in this category were seen nursing babies and they were out of school.
One of the girls who got married before the age of sixteen years and stopped schooling
explained in an exclusive interview:

“I was living with my senior sister and her husband in Tamale. One day
my mother asked my sister to let me come to the village. Immediately
I arrived in the village, the following day, my mother told me that my
father has decided that I got married to a husband whom I have never
known before. I had no option than to agree. The following week, the
husband’s father came to our house and begged my hand in marriage
and that resulted to my current situation. I was not able to continue
my education because by then, I was in class six in Tamale. When I got
married, my husband said that I cannot attend school again now that I
am married” (Field work, August 2012).

Early marriage may end a girl’s education; she may not be able to combine her studies with
matrimonial task she may even find it difficult to attend school and learn. All these factors
widen the inequality in school attendance between her and her male counterparts.

The evidence above was supported by Junge (1988) cited in Odaga and Haneveld (1995)
when the author noted that actions including early marriage compete with school for
girls in most societies in Africa and that the age at which girls marry make marriage an
important institution in the society. It was supported by El-sanabary (2001) when the
author also explained that the higher bride-wealth paid for educated girls is one of the
reasons that parents in Zaire send their daughters to school. In the Northern Region of
Ghana, girls in the school – going ages are given out for marriage at tender ages. Some are
betrothed at the age of two years and this leads to non-enrolment of girls in the in schools.
If even enrolled, they drop out because of pressures from their families to go and stay with
their husbands. Ahamed’s (2000) study in Ethiopia confirmed that 20 percent of primary
school girls were either promised marriage or divorced. In this case, both girls and boys
were affected. The situation in Ethiopia is not so different from the current study in the
Northern Region of Ghana; the only difference is that child betrothal in the Northern
Region was not the most common reason for non-enrolment of girls in schools as reported
in Ethiopia.

Another socio-cultural factor that affects gender equality in enrolment and attendance
is the practice of polygyny by the people of the Northern Region. According Robertson

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and Berger (2004) the practice of polygyny has its roots from the ATR. The study found
that polygyny is widely practiced in the Northern Region and negatively affects children’s
education, especially school enrolment and attendance. When Islam was introduced as
a religion in the region it gave credence to the practice of polygyny. Islam has restricted
its followers to marry up to four wives. On the contrary, African Traditional Religion
encourages a man to marry more than four wives. Exclusive interviews with two
respondents in Buya in East Gonja District and Kuyilli in Zabzugu Tatale District confirmed
how polygyny affect girls’ enrollment and attendance in education. The following
narrations were given by one of the Muslims interviewees living in the community
mentioned above. He had four wives with fourteen children nine girls and five boys. Out
of the nine girls only two are attending school in Tamale the rest of the children only assist
their parents in the market and on the farm. The two girls who attend school live with the
interviewee’s junior brother in Tamale. The interviewee said:

“I live with my four wives and twelve children. My only source of income
is what I get from the farm. I need to feed my wives and the children at
all times. So, if I send my children to school, who is going to assist me
again on the farm? Again, he added, I regret that my father did not send
me to school and it was the same problem he faced when I was young…
my inability to send my children to school is as a result of the number
of wives I have, it is Islamic teaching that I cannot refuse” (Field work,
August 2012).

Majority of Muslims throughout the Northern Region of Ghana practise polygyny and
this is often cited as one of the many reasons why gender disparity in enrolment and
attendance in basic schools still exists in the Northern Region of Ghana, especially in
the Muslim dominated areas. Muslims in the region cherish polygyny to the extent that
those with only one wife are considered as bachelors. The practice of polygyny though a
cultural phenomenon has support in the Islamic religion. The current results on polygyny
in the Northern Region show that there are still Muslims in the region who do not still
enrol their daughters’ and allow them to attend school and this violates the saying of the
prophet Mohammed: “Seeking of knowledge is compulsory upon both men and women.”

When polygynous households were interviewed it was found that 57.9 percent of the
households had two children are in school, 18.1 percent had three are in school, 10.4
percent had four boys attending school and 13.6 percent had one child attending school.
Confirming results, Robertson and Berger (2004) explained that women in polygynous
families bear the large burden of educating their children (both boys and girls). The author
added that the girl-child stands at a disadvantage when it comes to which child should be
withdrawn from school in these families. This situation is not different in the Northern
part of Ghana. Relating the effects of polygyny to fostering, both the girl-child and the
boy-child in urban areas stand at a disadvantage. Both girls and boys are given to other
relatives in the urban area to take care of. This practice is very common in the Northern
Region of Ghana.

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Foster mothers and fathers in many cases do not allow their foster children to attend
school.

The girls tend to be house-helps in the urban areas and are not allowed to attend school.
It was difficult getting out-of-school children to interview. An interviewee who was out of
school and currently staying with her aunt in Saboba said:

“I stayed with my father’s sister for almost seven years now. I stopped
schooling when I was in class three because my aunt said she has no
money to let me continue my education, but I noticed that my aunt’s
first child is in secondary school in Tamale and her other two children
are in Yendi with their father attending school. When my mother visited
us in Saboba I told her and she said she would discuss it with my aunt.
Since then I have not heard anything again” (Field work, August 2012).

Darkwah (2010) explained that fostering is an old cultural practice in Ghana and that
many Ghanaians are raised by other relatives but the practice does not augur well for girls
since most of them are denied access to education. As to whether the parents in the rural
areas are aware of the situation of their daughters in the urban areas in relation to their
education, 80 percent of the household heads explained that they are aware. However,
they noted that taking their daughters back may create disunity among the extended
family systems. They further explained that most of them went through the same fate
being raised by other relatives.

Menstruation is a natural event experienced by women during certain times of their lives.
Yet, it is often a topic which is seldom and openly discussed. Many girls lack sufficient or
accurate knowledge about menstruation. The parents often have misunderstanding and
mistaken beliefs. Many women do not understand the purpose of menstruation and
what happens in their bodies during menstruation. They do not attend school during
this period because of cramps that is associated with menstruation. Another female
interviewee said: “I do not attend School at all when I am menstruating. I experience
painful menstruation all the time so my parents are aware of my situation. At times, I do
not attend school three days during menstruation” (Field work, August 2012).

Another important factor is the performance of funeral rites, one of the most
solemn events in life when a loved one dies. It is therefore not surprising that in many
communities in Ghana funeral rites are performed in honour of the departed soul and
during the performance these rites pupils in both the primary and JHS schools do not
attend school because they are asked by their parents to assist the bereaved families in
cooking, fetching of water and firewood. This was found in the Muslim communities in the
Northern Region. In this case, the facts from the school registers showed that the girls are
affected more than the boys in school attendance.

The researcher witnessed funeral rites in Kpatiga and Wundua communities both were
Muslim Communities on Monday and Thursday. It was observed that the schools recorded

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low attendance of pupils, especially girls’ attendance as compared to the boys. The
registers of Kpatiga JHS in Gushegu Karaga District and Wundua Primary School in East
Mamprusi District of the two days were cross-checked and out of the total of 2,150 weekly
attendances of both boys and girls, the girls had a total of 760 attendances for the week
while the boys had a total 1,200 attendances for the two schools.

The study compared the total attendance from the registers of the two schools in Saboba/
Chereponi (Gbemja Primary) and West Mamprusi (Duu Primary) within the week in
which no funeral rites were performed in the two communities and realized that there
was disparity in school attendance between the boys and the girls. Out of a total of
2,140 school days, the girls recorded 955 total attendances while the boys recorded 1,185
total attendances. Though there was still disparity in the week of non-funeral rites,
the disparity gap was wide in the week of the funeral rites in favour of the boy-child.
On these days, it was again observed that the girls were asked by their parents to fetch
water and firewood for the bereaved families while some boys absented themselves
when there was drumming and dancing. The headteachers corroborated the findings
during the interviews. Eighty-nine percent of the headteachers explained that during the
performance of funerals in their communities about 70-80 percent of girls do not attend
school. They are asked by their families to go and assist the house where the funeral is
being performed in cooking, fetching of water and firewood.

Festivals in the Northern Region occur within the whole year and are used as a means to
remember the ancestors. They are also held to purify the community and allow its people
to go into the new-year with hope. “Damba” festival is not celebrated by the Christian
households but Christians who belong to the ethnic groups mentioned earlier celebrate
the “Bugum” or Fire Festival. The celebrations of these festivals involve a display of a
colourful tradition of the people in the region. The study further revealed that during
the celebration of these festivals both boys and girls do not attend school; the girls are
more affected than the boys. Checking from the school registers, it was observed that the
“Bugum” Festival only lasts for one day. The school registers for 2010/2011 academic year
of the various schools revealed that the days for the “Bugum” and the “Damba” (including
the “Somo” and the “Naa Damba”) for the year were not marked.

The average attendance for both boys and girls in Gushegu/ Karaga, Bimbila, Bole and
Tolun Kumbungu decreased by four days, when compared with the 2009/2010 as well as
2008/2009 academic years. The girls’ attendance was far below that of the boys therefore
disparity in attendance was in favour of the boys (1,432 and 2,134 respectively) and if this
trend continues the target of equality in attendance will not be achieved by 2015 in the
region.

The “unofficial” holidays of these festivals disrupt their academic calendar since they do
not know the exact dates of the festivals. The headteachers further explained that even
the death of an important person in the community calls for “unofficial” holiday because
both boys and girls are affected in this regard. Additionally, the study found that during

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the enskinment of regents or chiefs, attendance of the girl – child is poor as compared
with the boy-child. The headteachers explained the reasons for this phenomenon
by stressing that during this time families asked their girls to cook fetch water and
firewood for the occasion. Evidently, this widens the disparity in attendance between the
boys and girls in the basic schools in the Northern Region of Ghana. In a response to a
question relating to unofficial holidays during this period, District Directors said that it
is a tradition and that they allow it because they do not want to have problems with the
community chiefs since they are also partners in education. Implicitly, festivals though
a cultural practices negatively affect pupils’ attendance to school. The effects are more on
the girls than the boys because girls do not attend school on the celebration days and this
creates gender disparity in favour of boys in attendance to basic schools in the region.

As part of the household challenges, socio-economic factors that affect gender inequality
in enrolment and attendance in basic schools in the Northern Region of Ghana include
the occupation of the households, household heads income, cost associated with boys
and girls education, household chores, market days and the type of work both girls and
boys do at home. The occupation of the household heads was related to the income of the
household. Households’ earn their income through the work they do. Households with
low incomes are unable to meet the cost of educating their children, especially the female
children. One of them said: “I do not earn much at the end of the month; sometimes the
income from the sales of my farm produce is so low that I am unable to meet the cost of
educating my children” (Field work, August 2012).

This point is supported by the study of El-sanabary (2001). The author noted that girls
from the middle – incomes and high – income families in Africa are more likely to be
enrolled and remain in school as compared with the girls from low income families. It
was observed in the households that parents from rural areas in the Northern Region
are unable to meet the cost of educating both their girls and boys. Some of the children
were seen in school with torn uniforms which make them feel uncomfortable among
their peers in class and they sometimes discourage them from attending school. Even if
they even attend, they feel reluctant to participate in class and other school activities.
Household heads prefer the male child to go to school when the household heads’ income
is low. The boy – child will not get married and move out to stay with another family. So
investing in him could bring good returns to the household in future.

Household heads spend yearly on females’ basic schooling more than males’ schooling
(GHc 570.00 and GHc 420.00 respectively) and the situation where household income
is low it negatively affects females’ enrolment and attendance. This creates disparity,
especially in attendance in favour of the male-child. Mathew (2000) discussed many
factors which combine to spell an end to the education of the girl-child; poverty, cost of
voluntary contribution, school uniform, books and transport fares, which can even make
free education expensive. This widens the disparity in enrolment between boys and girls
in the basic schools in the Northern Region of Ghana.

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Specialisation of tasks is traditionally associated with gender. Girls in households are seen
as future mothers, care takers and domestic managers while boys in the households are
seen as future income earners. The single most important factor that creates inequality
in attendance among pupils in basic schools in the Northern Region of Ghana is the
household chores. The household chores included sweeping, fetching of water, helping
mothers to cook, washing of bowls and clothing and taking care of young siblings. All
the pupils participate in all sort of household work except that the household chores
dominate in the work girls do at home. It was observed in the communities that there
were boys seen herding livestock at the outskirts of the rural communities and some
girls were also seen assisting their mothers in buying and selling during market days.
For mothers especially, allowing their girls to attend school means more domestic
responsibilities for themselves, which indirectly affect their income earning ability. The
boys do more work on the farm as compared to the girls.

OXFAM (2005) studies in Zambia, Kenya, Mali, Cameroun and Uganda showed that both
girls and boys are equally involved in household chores and that the enrolment and
attendance of boys are greatly affected by this burden. The situation in those countries
is different from the situation in the Northern Region of Ghana. It can be recognized that
though some boys do engage in household chores, the degree of engagement is not equal
to the girls as claimed by OXFAM (2005). Mathew (2000) supported the current study by
noting that household chores have added to many factors that can combined to spell out
the early end of girls’ education. According to the author, poor families consider how much
a daughter can help in cleaning, cooking, collecting fire wood and water as well as looking
after young siblings and how little opportunity there will be for her to get a paying job if
she is educated. The household chores are preferred to allowing the daughter to attend
school and allowing her to attend school. The Mathew (2000) further added that even if
the girl-child is enrolled, the burden of domestic chores stands in a way of her educational
progress.

Many girls do not attend school on certain market days in the Northern Region of
Ghana. They go to the market to sell their parents’ wares. These market days were the
Tamale Market Days, Techiman Market Days in some cases and the Village or Community
Market Days. These market days are patronized by the people of the Northern Region of
Ghana. The result from the school registers when cross-checked showed that girls absent
themselves from school more than the boys. It was observed that out of the total number
of market days, the boys recorded a total of 211 market days while the girls recorded 110
market days in a year. It was observed that the disparity in attendance favored the boys,
3,597 days for all boys and 2,528 for girls. If this trend continues unchecked, equality in
attendance will be a mirage by 2015.The following chart shows weekly attendance by girls
as a result of market days.

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Gender Inequality in Basic Education in the Northern Region of Ghana

Figure: 1 Number of days girls attends school in a week as a result of market days
Source: Field Survey, August 2012

Figure 1 shows that 34 percent of the girls attend school twice in a week, 25 percent said
they attend school thrice in a week, 18 percent of the girls said they attend school four
times in a week and 23 percent said they attend everyday even during market days. These
responses further depict gender disparity in attendance in basic schools in the Northern
Region. In comparison, the study did not find any situation where the boys are asked by
their parents to sell wares at any market day. The boys explained that they do not go to
the market to sell anything with their parents and it is their sisters who go with their
mothers. During the interview with the headteachers, they explained that the situation
in which the girl-child has found herself in the Northern Region is considered excessive
exploitation and it is harmful and detrimental to her education and development. It is also
a hindrance to her preparation to adult roles and responsibilities.

CONCLUSION
There has been progress in school enrolment for both girls and boys in recent times in
the Northern Region especially between 2010 and 2012 academic years yet, inequality in
educational opportunities for girls and boys increased from primary to Junior High level
in 2012. The gender gap is so pronounced that it will be very difficult for the government
of Ghana to meet the target of equality in enrolment and attendance by 2015. Measures
including balancing the enrolment gaps especially at the beginning of school cycles to
prevent early dropout of girls and also a curriculum which does not replicate stereotyped
gender roles would effectively bridge the gap. These should be adopted by all districts in
the region.

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Gender equality in education requires gender mainstreaming initiatives in the entire

sector. In addition, special interventions targeting women and girls can make up for
serious gaps. In the process of planning education programmes it can be useful to
carry out a sector gender analysis to identify differences between boys and girls with
implications for school enrolment and attendance, Prospects for tertiary and vocational
training and use of educational skills on the formal and informal labour markets can
also inform a gender sector analysis in education. Gender inequality emerges at different
points through the education system. In many countries, gender gaps appear on the first
day of school.

Three quarters of the countries including Ghana that have not achieved gender equality
in enrolment at the primary level enrol more boys than girls at the start of the school
cycle. Unless this imbalance is corrected the inevitable result is a permanent gender
inequality in primary school. The socio – cultural-factors are more pronounced in the rural
households than socio-economic factors. Although both factors have negatively affected
gender inequality in basic education in the region the socio-cultural factors are important
to address than the socio-economic factors since these are embedded in the culture.

Vigorous sensitization on the negative effects of these socio-cultural factors on both the
girls and the boys basic education as well as remove all forms of levy in the basic schools
to enable parents enroll their girls would ensure equal access to basic education. A
subsidiary policy that would enforce the compulsory aspect of the free Compulsory Basic
Education such that sanctions can be applied to parents who often refuse to enroll their
children would also ensure that all children of school going age are enrolled in school in
the Northern Region of Ghana.

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