Factors Influencing Rural Women's Participation in Development Programmes in Rivers State Nigeria: Key for Social Exclusion Elimination

The study evaluated the factors influencing participation of rural women in development programmes in Rivers State with the view of eradicating social exclusion. Structured and validated questionnaire was used collect relevant information from two hundred and sixteen rural women elected using multistage random sampling technique. Data were analyzed using percentages, mean and multiple regression techniques. Coefficients for age (X₁) level of education (X-₂), extension contact (X₃), employment status (X₆), household size (X₈), and socioeconomic status (X₁₁) were significant at 0.01 level, while the coefficients for social organization membership (X₄), and religious denomination (X₅), were significant at 0.05 level, implying that these variables are the important factors influencing the level of participation of rural women in development programmes in Rivers State. It was recommended that programme planners and executors should take this factors discovered into consideration in any move aimed at elimination of social exclusion of women in development programmes.