ABSTRACT
The study investigates the relevance of women education in economic development of communities in Benin Metropolis. Five (5) research questions were raised to guide the study:
A total of One Hundred and Twenty Five (125) women from the five women adult education centres in Oredo, Egor and Ikpoba-Okha local government area where used for the study. Since the population is small, no sample was selected for the study as the researchers decided to use the entire population for the study. Questionnaire was the major instrument used for data collection. The questionnaire were designed and validated by experts in the department of Adult and Non-formal Education Faculty of Education University of Benin. Data were analysed using descriptive statistical techniques such as tables, frequencies counts, and simple percentages.
Findings of the study revealed that the various educational programmes engaged in by women are: catering, fashion designing, candle making, dyeing, fabric design, hair dressing. It was also revealed that the obstacles to economic empowerment of women in communities are; lack of spouse support, location of the centres, family responsibilities and high cost of acquiring the skills. .It was further revealed that to high extent educational programmes improve the economic well-being of women. Those educational programmes made the women to become financially independent by provided women with life skills that will make them to be productive entrepreneurs, practical skills for self-employment and make women to be employer of labour. It was recommended that more awareness should be created by way of publicity in the various media outlets, using jingles and other forms of advertisement so that more adults can be aware that such programmes exist. It was further recommended that Government should encourage women participation in educational programmes by giving them interest-free loans upon completion of the programme to enable them utilize the skills they have acquired. This will in the long run bring about, economic development in the state and improvement in the standard of living.
