The role of literacy in enhancing women's agency and well-being: A qualitative inquiry of the effects of the Tostan Educational Program on the lives of women in a rural community in Senegal

The literature related to world trends in il/literacy has well documented that women's lack of literacy limits their ability to maximize their potential on the individual, collective and national levels, thus leaving them at the margins of their respective societies. Women in Sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, remain one of the least educated groups in the world. For the majority of these women, adult nonformal may constitute a significant tool to bring about change in their lives.; In the 1990s, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) have played a significant role in women's basic education in general and in nonformal education for women in particular. NGOs are viewed as the indisputable new actors in the educational scene in developing countries. Despite the extensive coverage of the role of NGOs in providing educational programs for poor women, there is a paucity of research showing how successful these programs prove to be in catering to women's needs and in bringing about meaningful changes in their lives. More importantly, there is paucity of field-based research using the voices of women as prime data to explore the extent to which these literacy programs have effects on women's lives. This study examines the effects of the NGO Tostan's Educational Program on the lives of women in a rural community in Senegal, and ways in which it affects their agency and well-being.; The study progressed on the assumption that any literacy program that seeks to be successful in improving people's lives should develop greater sensitivity to local kinds of knowledge and culture. It is also premised on the assumption that, it is only when learners themselves play a full role in determining the place of literacy, that literacy becomes relevant to them and their lives.; Data were gathered through the use of qualitative methods, namely, focus groups, individual interviews, conversations, as well as observations.; The findings suggest that it is not literacy per se, but the overall empowering education process in which women gained access to skills, knowledge, and greater awareness, that allowed them to critically reflect on their social reality and take collective action to transform it.