Analysis of the Focus Group Results on Problems of Women Participation in Farmers Cooperatives
At the joint meeting of Mercy Corps and partners it was pointed out that despite certain number of participating women in the newly established cooperatives, they (women) have some kind of a passive role in regards to decision making and discussing the activities. It was noted that there was significant difference in the specifics of cooperative activities between Georgian and Armenian communities in regards to gender component, though such passivity was found out to be the characteristic feature for both communities.
(Cooperative members; male members of the cooperative and the farmer’s house)
Employees of Mercy Corps have certain empirical knowledge and assumptions for explaining the reasons of this gender problem. Within the frameworks of its program, ICCN, having determined to conduct a series of gender trainings, offered to arrange focus groups as a preliminary research activity with a few target groups. Generally, the findings of the focus groups should serve the purposeful implementation of the training and the planning of the gender factor in the program.
I. Focus Group with Women
The focus group aimed at identifying the reasons of passive role of women in the cooperative activities expressed the attitude of women towards this activity; frameworks of their role which provides such condition; their place and function within the community in general; perspectives for making the role of women more active.
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Female members of the cooperatives of the villages: Okami, Diliska, Baraleti and also 3 initiator women from the future cooperative of Akhalkalaki participated in the focus group.
Homogeneity of group was not maintained completely as far as the people from Akhalkalaki belonged to other social group and currently were not cooperative members, either. Their fluency in Russian was also dissimilar. There were frequent cases when they gave answers like women living in villages. According to the general observation, the village women were very passive at this meeting while expressing their opinions, and some of them were absolutely silent or laughed inconveniently. This once more proved that it is necessary to take measures for making the women more active and stronger, and to enhance their self-assessment. Otherwise the community development and poverty eradication programs will remain the programs of men only. Needs and problems of the female population will not be considered in these programs and the community groups, which are different because of gender, will not get equal benefits of this program.
Main Questions of the Focus Groups:
How did you become the cooperative member?
How does the community regard the cooperative?
What can the cooperative bring the village?
How many women are there in the cooperative?
How are you involved in the cooperative?
What is the participation of women at meetings?
Who tells you what to do?
Who disturbs you to be involved more actively?
Can a woman express her opinion?
- In the family,
- In the village
- At the office
What is the attitude towards the active women?