On a typical Thursday, Roukiyatou Compaoré’s workday is over by five p.m. The 38-year-old woman heads home from her office in Sector 55 of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, where she is a social affairs executive in Burkina Faso’s public administration. She work to reduce gender inequalities for equitable and sustainable human development in Burkina Faso, and the promotion of women and gender. Following a full day of work, she gets ready to handle the evening’s chores with her 16-year-old daughter’s assistance. These chores include dishwashing, meal preparation, running errands and doing laundry.
She explains, “My husband has been absent due to work commitments for 10 years. I’m juggling household duties, my child’s upbringing, and my career.”
Mrs. Compaoré became the head of the family when her husband emigrated. She works to provide for her family’s material and financial needs and collaborates with her husband and in-laws to make household decisions. She explains, “When it comes to major decisions about our child’s care and education, I consult with my husband or in-laws.” Mrs. Compaoré also includes her daughter in some decisions. She adds, “As my daughter is a teenager, I frequently involve her in discussions where she can offer her opinion. However, the final decision rests with me.”
She explains that managing the responsibility of being the head of the family alone is challenging. Especially with her professional commitments, she lacks the time to follow up on her daughter’s academic performance and her household chores. For this reason, Mrs. Compaoré often gets help with domestic tasks. She shares, “I often assign tasks that don’t require much effort to my daughter during her free time, like doing the dishes.”
Mrs. Compaoré supports her family with her income. She says, “With my salary, I cover health, food, and educational expenses for my child, as well as other routine costs.” She also finds time to engage in community life. Mrs. Compaoré is an active member of the parent-teacher association, which she joined nine years ago. The group helps children in difficulty and raises women’s awareness on various gender-related issues.
Ousmane Sawadogo served as a gender and protection expert for three years at the International Bureau for Children’s Rights (IBCR), and is currently a gender equality and inclusion officer at Farm Radio International. He says that having a women lead a household positively impacts family and community dynamics. Children are often more influenced by their mothers as they have a closer relationship with them, he notes, adding that this underscores the importance of women’s roles in decision-making within the household.
Mr. Sawadogo says that women can contribute to the family’s health and food security by taking on a leadership role, by making decisions that support family well-being.
But he acknowledges that female heads of family face certain challenges, including sociocultural pressures, managing children’s education, and having sufficient resources to meet the family’s needs. But he believes that women’s communication skills and assertiveness in standing up for one’s own or one’s family’s rights and needs can help them overcome these difficulties.
Mr. Sawadogo adds that teaching girls about behavior change can promote acceptance and understanding of female family leaders’ roles in society and empower them to effectively influence male behaviors.
He notes that women are key to a family’s economic and social development, being more often prudent with expenses and proactive in diversifying sources of income to support their families. He points to Mrs. Compaoré as a prime example within her community, highlighting her engagement in meaningful conversations and interactions with other people and groups. He believes that other women could be inspired by her example.
To balance her professional responsibilities and household chores, Mrs. Compaoré organizes her week. She cooks every other day and dedicates her weekends to laundry and shopping. Despite the challenges, Mrs. Compaoré believes that women can effectively play the role of head of the family. She concludes by sharing, “Women can manage the family as well as men if given the chance.”
This resource was produced through the ‘UCARE – Unpaid Care in sub-Saharan Africa‘ initiative, which aims to increase gender equality and women’s empowerment through a commitment to more just and equitable sharing of unpaid care and domestic work within the household and the family in sub-Saharan Africa. The project is implemented in partnership with Farm Radio International (FRI), UN Women, and The African Women’s Development and Communications Network (FEMNET) thanks to funding from Global Affairs Canada.