Exploring women’s agency through adult education program in Ethiopia

Abstract

The aim of the research is to look into the agency of women in Ethiopia’s Integrated Functional Adult Education program. The researcher’s perspective is guided by the constructivist approach paradigm in this study. To finish the study, the researcher uses a qualitative technique and an ethnographic case study design. The data was collected from learners, experts, and facilitators of adult education through interviews and focus groups. Purposive, snowball, and comprehensive sampling strategies were utilized to contact participants, and an inductive methodology with iterative phases was used to convey the findings. Women learners are exercising agency in their daily lives, according to the analysis. Women are only likely to make autonomous judgments for everyday consumption and modest purchases; they are less likely to make independent decisions for large purchases, family issues, and financial management. As a result, being unable to make decisions on these matters restricts women’s ability to live the lives they desire and be valued by society. In general, the study discovered that through the Integrated Functional Adult Education program, women are not fully expressing their agency.