At the request of the then Overseas Development Administration (now the Department for International Development), the Department of Education Studies and Institute of Education of the University of Hull was asked to examine the social, economic, religious and other factors influencing the degree of female participation in formal education institutions in six carefully selected developing countries. The intention behind the study was that it should provide information that governments and aid donors would be able to take account of in designing future educational projects, with a view to improving the levels of female participation in those countries where it lags behind that of males. While the study would not ignore participation in non-formal education, the main thrust would be towards broad general education at all levels, with the focus of attention at school level and an emphasis on the primary sector.
The study was to be undertaken with the agreement of the governments concerned. The researchers would also seek the cooperation of appropriate local contacts in each country selected, so that the work was a cooperative effort between the University of Hull and a number of partners overseas. The researchers would select the countries in consultation with the Overseas Development Administration and then determine for themselves the choice of partners. To maintain the comparative element in the study it would be necessary to establish a standardised methodology common to each country. The countries selected were Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, India, Jamaica and Vanuatu.
The General Report would be brief, drawing on and generalising from each of the country studies, which would follow. Where possible conclusions would be drawn and recommendations made that would be of use to advisers, planners and decision-makers associated with the development of educational systems. The nature of the topic required that such conclusions and recommendations took account of the sensitivities of overseas governments, especially since it was intended that the outcome should have an opinion-forming potential.
