Gender and Technology: The Role of TVET In Uplifting Traditional Knowledge and Technologies for Rural Women in Zimbabwe

The research unleashed the gap between gender and technological development that supports traditional technologies used by the rural women in Zimbabwe. Traditional technologies lag behind in terms of improvements though they preserve the Traditional Knowledge (TK) and folklore. The research explored the roles Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) plays in uplifting the traditional technologies used by woman in rural Zimbabwe. The sampled 5% rural girls who took up TVET education proved to be effective in designing products that enhances livelihood of rural women by identifying need through experience and exposure. The sampled process at an identified homestead has shown how rural women have accepted and adapted to the new technologies reducing the time taken in producing peanut butter from 8 hours to one and a half hours. The research concluded that thorough career guidance has to be provided for in the most marginalized rural schools, for rural girls to take their grassroots technologies up to TVET colleges and enhance them from their background knowledge. The curriculum must create signage between TVET colleges and the rural women so as to promote redesigning technologies previously developed by rural women either through attachments or recruitment of rural girls at TVET colleges. Key words: Gender, Technology, Traditional Knowledge, Folklore, TVET