Female clan leaders and women's empowerment in Lango

In Lango, Northern Uganda, 20 years of war, cattle rustling and HIV/AIDS have resulted in widespread loss of life, population displacement, and loss of property. In spite of this turmoil, some traditional cultural practices, such as widow inheritance, early child marriage, and widow cleansing continued, although they were increasingly seen to conflict with ‘modern’ development thinking, especially when infringing women and children’s rights. External development actors first tried to address this situation by ‘sensitising’ communities, but with limited success. It however soon became evident that clan leaders were instrumental in perpetuating cultural practices: in the early 2000’s, they became increasingly identified as key actors to address harmful traditions and to resolve conflicts. With the many trials faced by local communities, women’s roles in supporting the family institution and upholding cultural values had however expanded too. Several development organisations were established to address the challenges related to these changes and one was the Lango Female Clan Leaders’ Association, with a focus on promoting girls’ education and access to justice for women. This case study examines the role that these female clan leaders have successfully played in tackling current gender- related challenges. It explores the interface between traditional and modern gender concepts and the value of working with cultural resource persons to address cultural challenges. The study involved desk research, field based semistructure interviews, focus group discussions with 30 respondents and key informants, and a validation write-shop, all held in the course of 2008

Digital exclusion in later life : a Maltese case-study

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are driving profound changes in the way in which individuals, organizations and governments interact. In particular, the internet has been a major force behind the development towards a more globalized, knowledge-based economy. However, in terms of computer access and internet usage, a digital divide between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’ has long been recognized. One key sector of non-users consists of older persons. For various reasons – including no exposure to computers over their lifetime and in their occupations, income levels, physical disability and access to affordable ICT training – only limited percentages of older people have adequate ICT skills. A growing concern is that older adults who do not engage with ICTs face social disadvantages and exclusion. This article reports upon a qualitative study on older non-users of ICTs, with its key goal being to understand what leads to, and the effects of, digital exclusion in later life. Results found that older persons who never made use of ICTs were significantly delineated by gender and socio-economic status patterns - namely, women (especially housewives, who had never been in paid employment), individuals who worked in blue-collar and working-class occupations, and the long-term unemployed. Data also demonstrated that access was not the main issue at hand, and that the failure of older adults to become digital citizens was the result of a continuum of overlapping barriers. This study provided information highlighting the rationales and motivations underlying individuals’ non-use of computers - namely, believing that they were now ‘too old’ to use new technologies, a lack of relevance or ‘life-fit’ of computers, perceived non-usefulness and difficulty to use, anxiety about computer usage, concern about security and privacy issues, and the facing of disability issues.N/

Understandings of Education in an African Village: The Impact of Information and Communication Technologies

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Is the Impact of Human-Computer Interaction in Religious Organisations a Hype or Crossword?

The application of human-computer interaction is on the rise in sectors that were in previous years lagging, such as in place of worship and other forms of churches. While there has been hype about human-computer interaction is all areas of human undertakings. However, few research studies have assessed the impact of human-computer interaction in religious organisations. It is, therefore, paramount to assess the impact and implementation of HCI on the management of religious organisations. In this current research, the Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) church was chosen as a case in point. The study employed a qualitative approach whereby data were gathered using semi-structured interviews, and various levels of church leaders (elders) were interviewed. Using Atlas-ti software tool, the results presented several themes on how human-computer interaction could meaningfully improve the operations of religious organisations with regards to spiritual health, economic, and performance impac

Temporal Aspects in IS Research: Older People and Technology from a Temporal Perspective

In this position paper I present my PhD project - dealing with the relation between technology (ICTs and ATs) and older people – from a temporal perspective.In my research, a temporal perspective is useful both in the study of the process of aging and in the studies of gerotechnologies. In particular, in this position paper I take into account two concepts proposed by Barbara Adam (1990, 2004, 2009): timescape and futurescape. Timescapes identifies the combination of the irreducible elements involved in time. Amongst these, my analysis is focused on three elements: timing, tempo, temporal modalities. Futurescape is a useful theoretical tool to account for the social and historical features of our lives. In the paper I consider this concept from two different standpoints: present future and future present (Luhman, 1981; Adam and Groves, 2007). At the end, I propose to study the role played by ICTs and ATs as objects linking past, present and future

‘I don’t care about their reactions’: agency and ICTs in women’s empowerment in Afghanistan

Gender justice and women’s empowerment are both an end and a goal of sustainable development, and information and communication technology for development (ICT4D) policies and monitoring needs to be informed by this understanding. This article draws on research from Afghanistan exploring how women’s empowerment is conceptualised in relation to information and communication technologies (ICTs) currently, and how ICTs are used in processes intended to support empowerment. Our research shows that women in Afghanistan have high hopes that ICTs will be enabling and empowering. Yet the majority of women’s ICT activities do not realise that vision; with a few exceptions around women’s health, ICTs usually only enable women to meet their existing needs, and do not enable them to challenge patriarchal power relations. According to our respondents, using ICT for purposes that challenge patriarchy – e.g. using the internet to learn about rights to divorce or citizen’s rights, or sharing ‘private’ stories of abuse in social media spaces – has a high risk of social repercussions. We argue that these warnings and responses urge women to conform, and submit to control, and regulate women’s interactions and movements. They limit women’s choices, options, and power. However, some Afghan women in our research rejected these attempts to control and regulate – ‘I don’t care about their reactions’. This offers hope that for some individuals in some contexts, ICTs can put a dent in patriarchal power, supporting and furthering women’s empowerment

The reintegrating role that can be played by a traditional conflict-resolving mechanism in the eastern Hararghe zone of Oromiya regional state, Ethiopia

This article presents qualitative data on the reintegrating role that can be played by a traditional confl ict-resolving mechanism in the eastern Hararghe zone of Oromiya regional state. The study was conducted in one of the districts of the eastern Hararghe zone where resource-based inter- and intragroup confl icts are widely observed. The data used in the study were generated from one-on-one interviews, focus group discussions, and document analysis during fi eld work in the selected district. The study revealed that confl icts in the research site emanate from stiff competition among parties over scarce resources. Individuals’ avaricious behaviour, dilemmas, and uncertainty over their subjective and objective interests create competing goals, polarised groups and tensions, which in turn lead the parties to the confl icts. The confl icts become complex and cyclical due to unaddressed animosity, fear, frustration, and anger developed among parties in conflict. The study indicated that in spite of its declining power and sphere of influence, a community-based traditional conflict resolution mechanism called ‘Gumaa’ plays a great role in constructively resolving the inter- and intragroup conflicts and reintegrating the conflicting parties–revitalising the socio-psychological factors which contribute to peace.African Journal on Conflict Resolution, Volume 13, Number 1, 201

Enhancing the gender-responsiveness of your project's technical farmer training events

This resource sets out simple suggestions for ensuring that women as well as men feel included in training events, are fully informed about technological options, learn effectively, and have the confidence to implement what they have learned. Over time, if their experience has been successful, they should be able to build on the training course to innovate by themselves in response to their needs and changes in the wider environment

The effect of technology on work-life balance: Women in higher education

This study aimed to contribute to the literature on women, technology, and work-life balance (WLB). By identifying both instructional and non-instructional female employees at an institution of higher education, the study facilitated a comparison between the perceived levels of WLB and technology’s impact on the balance. A mixed methods survey was sent to all female employees to identify potential commonalities or differences between the groups. Questions inquired about employees’ experiences with, and outlooks on, WLB and information and communication technologies (ICTs). For the purpose of the study, ICTs included technologies such as email, accessed through computers, cell-phones or tablets. The results show differences between the perceptions of WLB in regard to the instructional and non-instructional employees surveyed. Though there was a significant difference, rather than negative perceptions, instructional faculty viewed ICTs as helpful for WLB. A lower perception of control for instructional faculty was anticipated because of the different pressures that come with their careers. The results from the study strengthen the understanding of technology’s implications on WLB. Moreover, the study adds to the literature of gender differences and WLB in the context of higher education. Future research should be conducted on the perspectives of female employees in the corporate sector. From the results, it is clear that part-time employees struggle to maintain balance because of limited access to the policies and benefits full-time employees are able to take advantage of. Future research should investigate strategies to eradicate this struggle