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Objective: Through the identification of the barriers to the uptake of prevention services for cervical cancer and ways to promote prevention of cervical cancer in the community, this research study purposed the development of a community-based model for promoting cervical cancer prevention among Yoruba women living in Ibadan, Nigeria. Method: An exploratory, descriptive design was used to collect data from 20 health workers and four policy makers using semi-structured interviews and key informant interviews respectively. The PEN-3 cultural model developed by Airhenbuwa in 1998 guided the exploration of the barriers to the uptake of available prevention services for cervical cancer, and the ways to promote the prevention of cervical cancer. Three interrelated and interdependent primary domains, namely cultural identity, relationships and expectations, and cultural empowerment, form the basis of the PEN-3 model. Cultural identity emphasises the subjective responses in relation to the community and cervical cancer prevention. Relationships and expectations determined health workers' and policy-makers' experience of community members' perception of cervical cancer. Enablers and nurturers alluded to the availability and accessibility of cervical cancer prevention resources, and the reinforcing factors that the women receive from their social networks. The central assumption of this theory is that health beliefs and actions that are harmful to health should be changed and the community's positive decisions and practices related to promoting a healthy lifestyle should be identified. Results: Findings from the health workers and policy-makers confirmed that community members lack knowledge and awareness of cervical cancer. Moreover, the findings show that the inaccessibility and unavailability of cervical cancer screening services play a role in its poor uptake. Conclusion: There is need for awareness creation of cervical cancer, and provision of prevention services at the community level. Screening services should be provided to women at subsidised cost. In order to contextualise the discussion, theoretical perspectives on cervical cancer are alluded to. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Research is a global enterprise requiring participation of both genders for generalizable knowledge; advancement of science and evidence based medical treatment. Participation of women in research is necessary to reduce the current bias that most empirical evidence is obtained from studies with men to inform health care and related policy interventions. Various factors are assumed to limit autonomy amongst the Yoruba women of western Nigeria. This paper seeks to explore the experience and understanding of autonomy by the Yoruba women in relation to research participation. Focus is on factors that affect women's autonomous decision making in research participation. An exploratory qualitative approach comprising four focus group discussions, 42 in-depth interviews and 14 key informant interviews was used. The study permits a significant amount of triangulation, as opinions of husbands and religious leaders are also explored. Interviews and discussions were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Content analysis was employed for data analysis. Findings show that concepts of autonomy varied amongst the Yoruba women. Patriarchy, religion and culture are conceived to have negative impact on the autonomy of women in respect to research participation. Among the important findings are: 1) male dominance is strongly emphasized by religious leaders who should teach equality, 2) while men feel that by making decisions for women, they are protecting them, the women on the other hand see this protection as a way of limiting their autonomy. We recommend further studies to develop culturally appropriate and workable recruitment methods to increase women's participation in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article uncovers the relevance to practice of behavioural and social determinant models of HIV prevention among Yoruba women in Nigeria. Exploring what factors influence health behaviour in heterosexual relationships, the key question raised was whether the women’s experiences support the assumptions and prescriptions for action of these two dominant public health models. Eight focus group discussions and 39 in-depth interviews were conducted, which involved 121 women and men who were chosen purposefully and through self-nomination technique. This study revealed that the women were very much constrained by social environments in negotiating safe sex, despite having at least a basic knowledge of HIV prevention. Limiting factors included the fear of relationship breakup, economic dependence, violence, and the difficulties in justifying why they feel the need to insist on condom use, especially since initiating condom use is antithetical to trust. Furthermore, evidence suggested that improved access to income and education might be vital but it does not automatically constitute a direct means of empowering women to prevent HIV infection. The limitations of both behavioural and social determinants perspectives thus suggests the need for a combination prevention model, which focuses on how social, behavioural and biomedical factors overlap in shaping health outcomes.

In most patriarchal societies, women's property rights are often achieved vicariously, usually through their husbands. By contrast, among the Yoruba of Nigeria, women have some levels of autonomy and independence such that they can accumulate property to which their husbands have no claim, yet they customarily do not have any inheritance right to their husbands' property. This study examines how this gender-equitable property rights regime affects gender relations at the household and societal levels through in-depth interviews conducted in 2012 with fifty-six purposively selected women property owners who lived in urban Ibadan, Nigeria. Findings include that though economic power has improved the status of the women and contributes to development of their communities, it has not yet translated into equity in decision making. More than economic power is required to attain equality. The capability of defining goals and acting upon them is also critical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies in Yoruba oral poetry have largely focused on Oyo, Egba, and Egbado in the Northwest, giving little attention to other areas of Yorubaland, including Ondo and Ikale, among other parts in the Southeast. Furthermore, the forms on which these studies concentrated, mostly chants, are invariably cultic and of a restricted spread. The more general, non-cultic forms, cutting across the vocal patterns of Yoruba poetry, are less frequently investigated where they are investigated at all. The consequence is that they are becoming extinct due to social modernity that is driven, on the one hand, by a combination of new spirituality and westernization and, on the other hand, by neglect in the academy. This is the point at which this study seeks entry, focusing on the less-investigated forms of indigenous songs that are performed at the birth of a child or during child-naming ceremonial rites in Southeast Yorubaland. This genre of traditional songs is rooted in Yoruba philosophy and poetry and constitutes the life-spring of popular, neo-traditional music like juju, fuji, waka, and highlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the significant contributions of women in economic development nationally, the unrecognized attitude of the government, lack of existing legal framework and policies, vagaries of informal economy and changes in the social-economic landscape have accounted largely for the closure of female enterprises in the informal economy. Using Yoruba female textile traders as a case study because these women have broken the "glass ceiling" and made a success of their textile trading, this paper examined the dynamics of entry and motivations of Yoruba women in textile trading. The paper synthesized Social Capital Theory by Coleman and Social Action Theory by Max Weber to explain the issue. It utilized a qualitative method of data collection. Eight focus group discussions and forty in-depth interviews were used to collect information from the women participants who were purposively chosen. The data reveal that parents, family/kinship members and friends had great influence in the strategic entry of women into textile trading in the Balogun market and the subsequent development of women's entrepreneurial activities. Yoruba female textile traders were motivated into textile trading because of economic and cultural values attached to the trade. This data is essential toward policy formulation for women's entrepreneurial development in the informal economy. This paper argues that any policies implemented for women entrepreneurs in the informal economy must be conceived, formulated and implemented with an in-depth understanding of the nuanced elements in the cultural domain within the social system, which the existing literature has yet to capture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An essay is presented that discusses the cultural context of black women in plantation societies in relation to West African views of women. Topics include the role of women in Yoruba culture, the notion of social reproduction, and witchcraft accusations against market women in Yorubaland. The symbolic significance of the blood of mothers is noted in relation to fertility.

Copyright of Journal of Women's Entrepreneurship & Education is the property of Institute of Economic Sciences and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Issues relating to the rights of women across the globe are a major focus of contemporary scholarship. Quest for women emancipation has been on the increase in religious, political and economic spheres. This is premised on the fact that women are always at the receiving end. This however has been discovered not to be true in its entirety as women in every society enjoy some inalienable privileges. This paper therefore discusses the status of Yoruba women in traditional Africa from a holistic perspective, with emphasis on how culture has impacted negatively on their well-being, although there are benefits derive from their status in society. Thus, it recommended that cultural practices that are harmful to women should be discarded, while caution must be exercised in the quest for the liberation of women so that African cultural values can be retained, and thus not destroyed under the guise of civilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Cahiers d'Études Africaines is the property of Editions EHESS and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: Combination antituberculosis drug therapy remains the mainstay of treating tuberculosis. Unfortunately, antituberculosis drugs produce side effects including (toxic) impaired visual function, which may be irreversible. We report a case of antituberculosis-drug-induced impaired visual function that was reversed following early detection and attention.Case Presentation: A 37-year-old Yoruba woman, weighing 48 kg, presented to our facility with impaired visual functions and mild sensory polyneuropathy in about the fourth month of antituberculosis treatment. Her therapy comprised ethambutol 825 mg, isoniazid 225 mg, rifampicin 450 mg, and pyrazinamide 1200 mg. Her visual acuity was 6/60 in her right eye and 1/60 in her left eye. She had sluggish pupils, red-green dyschromatopsia, hyperemic optic discs and central visual field defects. Her intraocular pressure was 14 mmHg. Her liver and kidney functions were essentially normal. Screening for human immunodeficiency virus was not reactive. Her impaired visual function improved following prompt diagnosis and attention, including the discontinuation of medication.Conclusions: The ethambutol and isoniazid in antituberculosis medication are notorious for causing impaired visual function. The diagnosis of ocular toxicity from antituberculosis drugs should never be delayed, and should be possible with the patient's history and simple but basic eye examinations and tests. Tight weight-based antituberculosis therapy, routine peri-therapy visual function monitoring towards early detection of impaired function, and prompt attention will reduce avoidable ocular morbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study illustrates how oral evidence, when properly situated within its social context, continues to provide information and a rich understanding of the African past. The commercial career of Rabi Alaso Oke, a female textile merchant in colonial Lagos, condensed in a Yoruba proverb, is analyzed in this work. This analysis of an oral text provides us with valuable insight, not only into the Yoruba worldview and social values that informed the proverb, it also enables us to appreciate the active role of women in this milieu. In order words, this study underscores the economic independence of Yoruba women using the career of Rabi Alaso Oke as a case study. It argues that despite the limitations and restric - tions of the colonial period, African women, just like their male counterparts, demonstrated remarkable resourcefulness and ingenuity, to rise above socio-economic barriers and amass for great wealth, which in many cases translated to social prestige. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses yùngbà royal chant, its nature, performance style, the training of yùngbà artists, and its socio-cultural significance within the traditional context of the palace. Yùngbà was a Yorùbá women's poetic form, performed specifically by royal wives (the Olorìs) and wives of privileged chiefs. Yùngbà functioned as a form of royal entertainment and a repository of the Aláàfin's genealogy. Yùngbà as a vital and essential part of the palace tradition is almost extinct today. Yùngbà may be ultimately saved from an undeserved extinction if it can be performed outside the palace of the chiefs in more socio-cultural domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditional cultural and religious practices of the Yoruba people of Nigeria are closely intertwined. Together they are influencing the way Yoruba people practice their Christianity. In traditional Yoruba religion, women are its majority membership and sustaining force. Consequently, women play leadership roles in Yoruba religion, especially as concerns ritual. These positive roles for women have also been incorporated into Yoruba Christianity. Women are therefore involved in the re-imagining of Christianity and in transforming its patriarchal practices to make them more female-friendly and inclusive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the image portrayed by Yoruba women as leaders of the early Pentecostal and new generation churches in Africa. It highlights how these women were confronted with conflicting identities triggered by the differing expectations of their church and of the Yoruba society. To clarify the author's perception, the lives of two prominent leaders, Dorcas Siyanbola Olaniyi and Stella Olujimi Ajisenbutu, are examined whose identities, as observed, mirrored those of the Victorian era.

In Nigeria, the number of women photographers has drastically increased since the emergence of color photo laboratories and more sophisticated equipment automation. If the profession has considerably feminized itself over the past ten years in the South-West, nothing of the kind has yet happened in the rest of the country. Many young girls are placed by their parents with a studio, due to lack of means to offer them a better education. Whence an over-feminization of apprenticeship, which can but pose problems to professional authorities, who are much concerned about the future of the profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the effect of age at first marriage, number of wives and type of marital union on fertility among Yoruba females in Western Nigeria. The evidence indicates that age at first marriage and hunband's number of wives do not have a significant effect on completed fertility. Type of marital union, on the other hand, seems to have an effect on fertility. Women in de facto unions experience lower fertility than women in formal marriages. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Reports on the history of Yoruba women from precolonial times to independence. Significant role of Yoruba women in precolonial political organization; Female leadership in the precolonial era; Women under the Colonial rule; Impact of Christianity and western education; Change and continuity in the role of Yoruba women and female leadership; Impact of colonialism on women's economic and political participation.

The article presents findings of a survey-based study of jedi jedi, an ethnomedical condition, and its implications for home management of diarrhoea. Diarrhoea with dehydration is one of the leading causes of childhood morbidity and mortality in developing countries. Oral rehydration therapy using home-made salt sugar solution (SSS) has been found to be a life saving therapeutic measure. The survey took place in the rural community of Igbo-Ora in the Ibarapa Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria, where the population belongs primarily to the Yoruba ethnic group. Mothers of children with jedi jedi were taught to make the national formula for SSS. Home follow-up evaluation of 124 mothers showed not only better knowledge and skill but also greater use of SSS than a group of control mothers who had not attended the training session.

A case study of a Yoruba city of pre-colonial origin, Ilorin, Nigeria, reveals a movement of rural women to marry into wealthy polygymous compounds in the city and the return of some of these women to their rural natal compounds later in life. This movement may be an explanation for the high proportion of women in indigenous towns, and perhaps also in some newer medium-sized settlements. It can also be seen as a reflection of the unequal and exploitive relationship between the towns and their rural hinterland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The behavior and attitudes of Yoruba women in relation to pregnancy and childrearing are described and attention is drawn to their continued patronage of traditional practitioners in their search for magico-medical means of ensuring conception. Sick infants are increasingly being taken to hospital, most mothers having become convinced of the value of modern medicine for acute illness. Educated women are tending to discard local treatments entirely. In most cases, however, traditional precautions are concurrently observed. The practice of one hundred healers is reviewed and reasons suggested for the persistence of therapeutic methods which are culturally approved and personally reassuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the religious information inside Ghanaian and Nigerian video movies regarding Akan and Yoruba women. More specifically, it focuses on the indigenous religious, Christian, and Islamic messages inside these movies in relation to women. The article demonstrates that Akan and Yoruba filmmakers, who dominate the Ghanaian and Nigerian video movie industries, are part of networks of religious institutions, predominantly Pentecostal-Charismatic Christian and modest Islamic ones. These organizations sponsor filmmakers to spread religious messages that promote hierarchical gender relations and the suppression of equal rights for women, e.g., economic independence. By providing an overview of Akan and Yoruba belief systems, in respect of indigenous, Christian, and Islamic gender-related positional concepts and ideological communication on what is appropriate behavior for women, the author will show and support the hypothesis that these movies contribute to women's demonization and (economic) discrimination. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. [Journal abstract] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]