IB2017/3 Conflicts over Credit: Challenges to Women's Economic Empowerment in Solomon Islands

This In Brief looks at the challenges to women’s economic empowerment posed by the cultural pressure to give. Though the pressure to give affects everyone who has an income, women are more likely to be intimidated by it and so particularly disadvantaged. Solomons men, having been raised to be very assertive, are more able to refuse such requests with confidence. Moreover, women’s income-generation activities are more likely to expose them to requests, since their income often comes from marketing of garden produce and cooked food, and people can see that money is being gained. Men, on the other hand, more often gain income through paid employment or from cash crops, like copra or cocoa, sold in bulk.