The Political Economy of Household Environmental Management: Gender, Environment and Epidemiology in the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area

Abstract In many low-income cities, environmental problems in and around the home impose an enormous burden, particularly on women, children and the elderly. Practical strategies are needed to assist women in diminishing or transcending the environmental hazards associated with their traditional roles. This paper examines the gender dimension of local environmental management in Accra, relating this in turn to household wealth and the environmental hazards children face. It provides a qualitative account of the gender division of labor in and around the home and a quantitative analysis of some of the environmental risks that women and children are exposed to, and their possible health effects. The results also help explain why women have reason to be skeptical of government-led improvement efforts, particularly in those areas where they ought to benefit most from better conditions.