Culture and Change: Ethiopian Women Challenging the Future

Culture and Change: Ethiopian Women Challenging the Future takes an unusual look at women's issue in Ethiopia. Instead of focusing on the many difficulties that women face in this largely traditional society, it highlights the positives. It releases rays of sunshine rather than fogs of gloom. It describes how customs in various cultures in Ethiopia support and protect women, rather than oppress and harm them. It describes how organizations are fighting to overcome ignorance, change attitudes and better the lot of women. And it tells how a few admirable individual women have struggled against odds, and how they succeeded. The book contains five parts. Part 1, Becoming a woman, describes the ceremonies and rituals that a woman goes through from her girlhood through to motherhood and old age. Part 2, Social and Economic Empowerment, shows how Ethiopian women work together to empower themselves socially and economically. Part 3, Education and Media, looks at the status of girls in the education system, tells how certain women have managed to overcome barriers facing them to get schooling, and describes how the media is being used to change attitudes. Part 4, The Law, shows how national and traditional laws affect women, and how women are trying to change the law. Part 5, Challenging Roles, tells the stories of some individual women who have fought against the odds to achieve something for themselves or for others. The Resources section lists websites, publications and organizations relevant to gender and women's issues in Ethiopia. This book will be a valuable source of ideas and inspiration for schools, non-government organizations, community organizations and government departments involved in extension, training, development work and policy formulation.