Research paper on income generating activities and development projects for women, incl. Rural women, in developing countries - covers project design, economic implications, social implications and agricultural projects, etc., and includes case studies on local levelly planned community development projects, village self help, craftsmanship, vocational training for the construction industry, self employed women's associations, etc. Bibliography p. 42.

This practice manual is for trainers and extension workers designing programmes to promote income-generating activities and the creation of micro-enterprises among rural women. While the manual was developed and field-tested in Africa, it can be easily adapted to other social and cultural situations in developing countries.; The manual is divided into seven modules covering the development of the training programme, the discussion of the suggested methodology, marketing management, financial management and conducting feasibility studies. The emphasis is on ""learning by doing"" through a combi.

Women are central to overcoming rural poverty. They play a critical role in poverty reduction and food security because they are responsible for both production and reproduction. Rural women in developing countries have longer working days than men because of their triple roles as farmers, caretakers of their families and cash earners through income-generating activities and microfinance. In addition, increasing drought and deforestation in many parts of the world make women's workload even more burdensome as they have to walk ever-longer distances to find firewood and clean water. The multiple roles of women can act as an obstacle to development interventions, which often put additional pressure on women's time. Women's heavy workload reduces the time available for participation in project-related activities or affects their ability to care for their families. Ensuring women's access to labour-saving technologies for water, energy and farm-related activities is fundamental, and the need for such technologies is greater than it has ever been before. This timely publication looks back at three decades of experiences in introducing labour-saving technologies and practices to rural women and in combating persistent gender discrimination in access and control. It also takes into account major developments in science, technology and innovation over the last several years and shows they can benefit women.