Work-family Interface in Sub-saharan Africa ― Challenges and Responses

Work-Family Interface in Sub-Saharan Africa

Challenges and Responses

Zitha Mokomane, editor

Problems associated with work-family conflict do not belong to individual families alone, but have a major social and economic impact on the greater community. This scenario also holds true across sub-Saharan Africa, as nations enter the global economy and rising numbers of women enter the workforce.

One of the first resources to focus on this region, Work-Family Interface in Sub-Saharan Africa probes rarely-studied dimensions of conflict between paid employment and family responsibilities. It balances theoretical background, empirical findings, and current and emerging interventions for an insightful and practical review of ongoing issues affecting working women with families. Coverage contrasts concepts of work and family between the developing world and the West, and related social concerns such as gender expectations and sexual harassment are examined in the work context. The book describes a range of family strategies for resolving work-family friction, and chapters end with policy recommendations as first steps toward remedying longstanding challenges. Among the thought-provoking dispatches:

• Ghana: Managing work and family demands
• Nigeria: Strain-based family interference with work
• Botswana: The social impact of job transfer policy on dual-career families
• Kenya: The role of household help in work-family balance
• South Africa: State measures toward work-care integration
• Zambia: The quest for a family policy

As evinced by these chapters, progress is gradual and far from uniform. As a guide for future study and future policy, Work-Family Interface in Sub-Saharan Africa is a substantial reference for sociologists, public health professionals, public and social policymakers, and administrators.

Dr Zitha Mokomane is a senior research specialist in the Population Health, Health Systems and Innovation programme at the Human Sciences Research Council of South Africa. She holds an MA and PhD in demography, both at the Australian National University. Before joining the HSRC in April 2001, she was a senior lecturer in the Department of Population Studies at the University of Botswana. She has also consulted for a number of governments and national and international organisations on various social and demographic issues. Her areas of research interest include work-family interface, social policy analysis (with special emphasis on social protection), family demography, and HIV and AIDS operations and evaluation research.Dr Mokomane's publication record spans the authoring and co-authoring of more than 30 journal articles, book chapters, and conference presentations. Her most recent work, published in Child and Family Social Work, investigated the trends and patterns of adoption in South Africa.