Traditionalists, Muslims, and Christians in Africa: Interreligiou ...

Whether in a monogamous or polygamous home, the household is usually under the charge of the husband or a responsible adult male. Two decades ago, the husband, as head of the home, was considered to be the sole breadwinner, and everyone in the home depended on him to provide for their needs. In the hinterland, it was, in turn, the assumed responsibility of the wife/wives to help on the farm, prepare meals, nurse infants, and nurture and instruct the children in the norms of the society.

In the absence of grown-up children capable of doing chores, the cleaning, laundry, and gathering of firewood fall on the wife—or on the junior wives if there is more than one wife in the home. In the Western Area, the wife/wives assume similar responsibilities (with the exception of working on the farm), and women who work outside of the home take maternity leave in order to raise their children.

Today, as a result of social and economic changes, some gender roles have been altered. As well as general living expenses, families now have to pay head and income taxes, and children who show academic promise have to be sent to college or university after secondary school. As these expenses increased, in many cases, one income was not enough to make ends meet. In rural regions, produce from the farm often was not enough to meet the financial demands of the household. For many of those with jobs, in both rural and urban areas, a single salary was often not enough to pay the monthly bills and to provide other necessities. In the hinterland, most married women became involved in small-scale businesses to supplement their husbands’ farming income. In the urban areas, noneducated women also engaged in petty trading, while educated women either took jobs in offices or began their own businesses. Thus, breadwinning has become a responsibility that is shared between husband and wife, often with the wife managing the finances of the home.

Although breadwinning is now a task shared between husband and wife, traditionally, the husband is still seen as the provider. Even if the wife’s income is greater than that of the husband, it is still seen as the responsibility of the husband to provide the family with necessities. For this reason, if the husband requires his wife’s assistance in providing for the family, he should be very kind and polite to her because if the family is not provided for, society will hold only the husband accountable for the failure to provide, regardless of his wife’s financial status.