SUSTAINING FAMILY ECONOMY THROUGH EMPOWERMENT IN A CHALLENGING GLOBAL ECONOMY

Olugbamigbe, A. Olukemi and Adepeko, E. Omotunde

Department of Home Economics

Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo

E-mail: kemiolug@yahoo.com

Abstract: Food and financial crisis, climate change, extreme poverty, urbanization, water scarcity, energy security, migration and population growth to mention just but a few constitute the rising global challenges. The consequences of these challenges are biting hard on an average Nigerian. The family, a basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not has its own share of these consequences. The paper discusses the challenges of global economy with particular emphasis on food security and agriculture as well as resource scarcity. The paper also contends that women empowerment as a process of increasing the capacity of women to make choices and to transform those choices into desired actions and outcomes is capable of maintaining the economy of the family amidst trending global challenges. The paper recommends that sustaining family economy is not limited to the effort of the “breadwinner” but also extends to the immense contribution of the “family manager”, the woman, hence a need for women empowerment.