-9

a contact point for providing inputs through in-kind credit arrangements (Walker 1989).

1. 25 When their access to formal financial institutions is limited, women tend to rely on informal credit systems, including traditional credit/savings societies--such as tontine and esusu

## **NALAW. : UEM FPARERS'** LCa **FERTILIZER USE**

> In Maiawi's Phaloato Rural Devetapnent Prolect, 33X of maie heads of household and only 15X of femate heads of households appt ed fertitizers; these were usualty farmers i9th above avrage si2e- holdings

groups-- merchants, moneyienders, relatives, and friends. Rural women's demand for credit is strong, judging from the fact that they are willing to pay many times the market interest rates for informal credit.

1.26 The problems of providing credit to rural women are not insurmountable. In many countries schemes are underway with innovative - approaches to overcoming the collateral problems for example, using the joint pledging of a group, like with Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, the mobility - and time problems for example, through using mobile banking units and more - flexible hours of operation, and illiteracy for example, using a bank card with colors for units of saving/credit corresponding to different bank notes, as with the credit scheme operated by TOTOTO, an NGO in Kenya.

# (d) Lack of Mobility and Time

1.27 Extension agencies also need to consider tha- women tend to be less mobile and have less uncommitted time than men. The time and energy involved in providing the family with food, fuel and water leave little time to participate in regular extension programs and inhibit women's ability to respond to opportunities. Women's dual roles and the relative inflexibility of domestic chores, such as family meal preparation, require that extension planners consider carefully the timing and scheduling of extension contacts to allow more women to participate.

## Box 2: **UrENI'S** TIME USE

Studies of time use in rural Africa indicate women are tikely to have fewer leisure hours than men. Research in Burkina Faso reported that men averaged twice as much time resting and relaxing each day as women (McSweeney, 1979). The same study reported that enmm contributed altst as mach tine per day to food and cash crop production as mn. Women did virtually all winnowing, threshing, food processing, and fetching of water. Men spent more time on community obligations, crafts and other professions, and listening to the radio or reading. A 1987 time allocation study in one Gambian village reported that women performed 53% of agricultural and 73X of domestic work compared to 33X and 6X respectively for men. _Wamn_ vere respansible for 58X of the total village time allocated to **prochctive** activities **copared** to 2ZS for mn and 17X for children (Bastone 1987). In Bandundu, a principal agricultural region of Zaire where cassava is the main crop and women are the dominant farmers, women spend one-third of the day processing and preparing food (Eele and Newton 1985). Avaloable data in Kenya indicate women spend onethird of working hours on food preparation and child care which stretches their working day to 13-14 hours. Most of them spend three hours a day fetching water. (Worid Bank 1989)

1.28 Women are also less mobile, because they have less time, less cash for transportation, and less likelihood of owning transport. In some