Revealing the Lives of Poor Female Heads of Households: What Can Be Done?

Women who are heads of households are often trapped in poverty and are in quite vulnerable conditions. They have to carry out a dual role: taking care of the household and at the same time earning a living for their family. Uncovering and understanding their life can help find the best way to improve their life. This study uses a descriptive-qualitative analysis approach by combining secondary and primary data analysis. All research activities focus on the conditions and situations faced by poor female heads of households in Gorontalo Province, Indonesia. This study found that the combination of old age, uneducated, unskilled, and unemployed is the main factor causing poverty in poor female heads of households. Basic public services and economic resources, which are unable to reach all poor households, have contributed to exacerbating poverty conditions. Therefore, to improve the standard of living of women headed poor households, interventions are needed that combine social assistance and protection (such as provision of cash, food assistance, health insurance, etc.), provision of skills, equipment assistance, business capital assistance (especially for trading businesses), access to micro-credit, and assistance, while improving their housing conditions, especially housing, sanitation, and clean water.