What is the Feminization of Poverty?

Feminization of poverty is a term that describes women as the most vulnerable group of people in the world prone to poverty. It reflects the changes and impacts that affect poverty rates worldwide. In today's modern world, women suffer more than any other group under the overbearing weight of complete lack and forced gender biases that inhibit their everyday living experiences. When you refer to poor people, six in ten of them are women- many of them being single mothers. All around the world, women find themselves in difficult situations conditioned by economic, social, cultural, and health factors that expose them further to extreme situations. Poverty, on the other hand, is commonly associated with a lack of income and adequate standard of living. It depicts the lack of opportunities, enjoyment and in the cases of many women, the limitation and restriction of choices in societies that consider them second-class citizens. Although gender equality has pervaded most societies, the position women occupy can still be described as complex in many regions of the world. A good example is the surge of misogyny in South Korea, the 10th largest economy in the world with 51% of the women population active in the labour force, electing an infamously known misogynist as president. Soon after he was elected, President Yoon Seok-yul quenched every effort in the country to promote gender equality. However, the issue of gender inequality is infact more dire in developing societies. Two in three adults living in abject poverty are women. In Nigeria, the current poverty capital of the world, women subordination has been happening for many years. Women in Nigeria represent 51% of the population, aiding the economy's labour force and producing over 60% of the country's farm produce. Yet, the United Nations Development Programme shows that less than 20% of these women own actual lands and barely get the credit for their agricultural input. 

Nigeria Women in Poverty - Past Years

Throughout the years, poverty in Nigeria has afflicted women more, leading to many untold hardships. Before the colonial era, women were perturbed by so many terrors like being sold off to a man at the young age of 15 due to poverty or having to share one husband and his meager income with two other wives, leaving no means of sustenance for herself or children except the man wills it. Many young girls suffered the torture of genital mutilation due to illiteracy while the women who dared to be outspoken on issues affecting them were labelled witches and cruelly discriminated against. Women were continually left out of family inheritance and businesses, a familiar source of wealth, forcing them to live on scraps while the men lived well-off lives. When colonization forced its way in, the status of the average Nigerian woman became worse. You see at that time, many parts of the country were already immersed in traditional patriarchal relations. This allowed Western patriarchal systems and policies to fit like a glove. Women are now forced to be mothers, workers, providers, caretakers, cooks, and teachers- aiming to please everyone both at home and at their workplace. the feminization of poverty in Nigeria has escalated, along with extreme gender inequality, stifling dreams and aspirations of women spread across the society. Many women today still face problems that were also problems in past societies. Capitalism and consumerism remain the order of the present day and yet women are still fewer than men in almost every working industry. They also earn way less than men do. In 1992, The Women Advocates Research and Documentation Center (WARDC) recorded only one (1) female senator out of the 91-seat Nigerian senate. Fast forward to the year 2023, the Senate House, now containing 98 seats, has 15 female senators according to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). While little progress regarding women's affairs can be seen from these facts, it is still extremely sluggish and getting no recognition from the Nigerian Government due to gross underrepresentation. Even if they tried, Many women cannot run for political positions because of societal factors such as lesser access to employment, the high cost of vying for political positions, childcare, gender-related violence, and cultural/traditional norms- All of these reasons are directly linked to poverty and marginalization. 

Nigerian Women in Poverty - Recent Years

Today, both educated and uneducated women in Nigeria face hindrances and many times, have to deal with it alone or saddled with kids. Statistics show that women make up 70% of the poor people in Nigeria. More than half of the women living in rural areas are surviving below the poverty line. In developing regions of the world, anything can go wrong for a young girl regardless of whatever privilege she is blessed with. The idea of a woman being plunged into abject poverty is way more than capitalistic income-earning conversations. It is also about access or lack thereof to things like education, quality healthcare facilities, assets, housing and proper nutrition. In Adunola Adepoju's 'Feminization of Poverty in Nigerian Cities', A certain Muslim woman from the city of Osogbo in Nigeria defined it most authentically: 

“Poverty is sorrow. It is the totality of want and lack of necessities of life such as good food, clothing, house, money, job and even education. For young women, poverty forces them to do things that they do not want to do - prostitution, begging, stealing, suicide and evil thoughts against others.”

For many women, poverty is so central in their lives that it weighs them down with hopelessness and hungry desperation which in turn affects the needs of their children. Single mothers in Nigeria make up 9.5% of the entire population and yet have to put up with juggling two to three jobs to afford the basic needs of their families. Many of them face exploitation simply because they are willing to do all they can to save their children from the lack that they suffer. This, however, is not the same for many family men. In America, over 40% of low-income earning men just up and walk away from their entire families when they start to feel burdened by needs, bills, and demands. This is a fairly common occurrence worldwide that receives very little backlash but when a woman chooses to leave her family to fend for just herself, which is usually due to deprivation, she will be heavily chastised by society and can even be arrested. Poverty destroys happiness, ruins mental stability and forces people to make atrocious decisions regarding their well-being. As poverty in Nigeria continues to be even more appalling in the last two decades, women are under more pressure to make ends meet. Thousands of Nigerian women have expressed feeling burdened with more responsibilities than the men in their lives. Women just want to live better and do better but even the living conditions in Nigeria are so incorrigible that it worsens already blighted situations. The Nigerian government needs to create more employment opportunities and the necessary social benefits to aid women and their communities so we can be able to envision a better future for our little girls.