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Citation
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Porter G, Hampshire K, Abane AM, Munthali A, Robson E, Mashiri M, Tanle A. World Transp. Policy Pract. 2010; 16(1): 51-71. |
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Abstract
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This paper draws on empirical data from a three-country study (Ghana, Malawi, South Africa) of young people's mobility to explore the gendered nature of children's journeys to school in sub- Saharan Africa. Gender differences in school enrolment and attendance in Africa are well established: education statistics in many countries indicate that girls' participation in formal education is often substantially lower than boys', especially at secondary school level. Transport and mobility issues commonly form an important component of this
story, though the precise patterning of the transportation and mobility constraints experienced by girl schoolchildren, and the ways in which transport factors interact with other constraints, varies from region to region. In some contexts the journey to school represents a particularly hazardous enterprise for girls because they face a serious threat of rape. In other cases girls' journeys to school and school attendance are hampered by Africa's transport gap and cultural conventions which require females to take on this burden (by pedestrian head loading) before leaving for (or instead of attending) school.
Our evidence comes from a diverse range of sources but, for reasons of space, we draw principally here on a survey questionnaire conducted in each country with approximately 1000 children aged 7-18 years across 8 sites. We aim to draw attention to the diversity of gendered travel experiences across geographical locations (paying attention to associated patterns of transport provision), to explore the implications of these findings for access to education, and to suggest areas where policy intervention could be beneficial.
Keywords: children's journey to school, sub-Saharan Africa, gender, threat, transport, mobility, cultural conventions, education |