CAPACITY BUILDING AND POVERTY REDUCTION AMONG RURAL WOMEN IN IDEATO SOUTH LGA, IN IMO STATE, NIGERIA

Authors

Milicent Amaka Emeto Department of General Studies, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria
Agnes Osita-Njoku Department of Sociology, Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria
Uchenna Okechukwu Iwu Department of Sociology, Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria

Capacity Building, Poverty Reduction, Rural Women, Tailoring, Women Development

This study investigated the impact of capacity building and poverty reduction

among rural women in Ideato South LGA, Imo State, Nigeria, with a particular focus on tailoring

programs. The research aimed to examine whether women's empowerment through tailoring led

to financial independence, whether government-provided credit incentives improved living

standards, and the extent to which skills acquisition programs reduced economic backwardness.

The study adopted a survey research design, with a sample of 325 respondents selected using

simple random and purposive sampling techniques. The data collected were analysed using

descriptive statistics and Chi-square tests to test the study’s hypotheses. The results revealed a

significant relationship between women’s empowerment through tailoring and financial

independence (χ² = 7.9, p < 0.05). Furthermore, the provision of government credit incentives was

found to significantly enhance the standard of living of rural women (χ² = 8.3, p < 0.05). Lastly,

skills acquisition programs, particularly in tailoring, were shown to have significantly reduced

economic backwardness among rural women (χ² = 6.4, p < 0.05). These findings suggested that

capacity-building initiatives, such as tailoring programs, played a crucial role in empowering rural

women and improving their socio-economic conditions.