Rural Women’s Coping Strategies Against the Effects of Covid-19 Pandemic in Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria

. The study examined the rural women’s coping strategies against the effects of covid-19 pandemic in Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. Eight five respondents were randomly selected in seven communities for the study. The data was collected using frequency count percentage mean and earson roduct oment orrelation The result reveals that all the respondents were aware that covid-had een declared as a pandemic The increase in price of goods and services x 4.5 was the highest ranked perceived effect of covid-pandemic on the respondents earing of animals x 1.46) was the highest ranked coping strategy adopted by the respondents against covid-19. There is significant relationship between coping strategies and perceived effects (r=-0.207, p=0.057) at 10% level of significance. The study there recommended that there should be provision of more awareness on covid-19 pandemic and there should be creation of additional job opportunities in the rural areas for women who are affected by covid-19 pandemic.


I. INTRODUCTION
Rural women play crucial roles in ensuring food and nutrition security and improving the well-being of their families and communities. Rural Women plays immeasurable role in Nigerian food production, although motivation for participating in agriculture is first to contribute to household food security and income. Despite the contributions of rural women, they have limited access to land and other economic resources within their communities. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is a systemic shock that affects every spheres of life including rural women who plays vital roles in the agricultural value chain activities. A growing range of impacts on rural women is evident. This includes lock down and restriction of movements, disruptions in Rural Areas marketing activities and high incidence of hunger and poverty.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has been accompanied by major changes and challenges in many dimensions of human lives (Mahona and Pacho, 2021). COVID-19 is continuing to spread around the world, causing tough times for many rural women and posing serious challenges for the sustainability of food production and supply, and agricultural markets (Jámbor, Czine and Balogh, 2020). According to World Farmers Organization (2020), the pandemic outbreak of COVID-19 has an impact on the entire food supply chain, confirming in the most terrible way that we are all part of a food system that is interconnected and fragile.
The struggle to fight the COVID-19 pandemic is compounded by lack of information, poor health services and loss of means of livelihoods (FAO, 2020). The implication of this is that rural women who are more vulnerable to poverty and food insecurity were severally affected. Sub-Saharan Africa Agriculture is largely dominated by smallholder farmers, many of whom are landless women who dwell in rural areas, faced by climate variability and resource constraints (Bashuna and Addom, 2020). Thus, with the negative impact of COVID-19 pandemic on rural women, food security could become a major challenge, coupled with poverty and malnourishment.
The pandemic is exacerbating already existing structural inequalities, increasing the burden on women as they struggle to fulfill their multiple roles of managing their families, farms, and small businesses. Furthermore, the gendered access to opportunities means that women and men have different resources available to them to prepare for, cope with, and recover from such a crisis There is paucity of information on the rural women's coping strategies against the effects of covid-19 pandemic in the study area. Hence, the effect of COVID-19 and the coping strategies the rural women are adopting to be resilient in the phase of the pandemic needed to e investigated Studies on the rural women's coping strategies against COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria are needed so as to identify areas where further interventions would be made as COVID-19 pandemic has not een declared to e over in the country Therefore there is a need to examine the rural women's coping

II. METHODOLOGY
This study was carried out in Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. The population for the study consists of eighty-five (85) rural women who were randomly selected from seven (7) rural communities in Ilorin East Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. The rural communities are Oke-ese, Eleko, Oke-oyi, Agbede, Abeyangi, Panada and Apado. The Bio-security measures was determined using a 3-point likert typed scale, where Never=1, occasionally =2 and Always =3. To determine the knowledge of rural women on covid-19 pandemic, a scale of Yes and No was used where Yes = 1 and No = 0. The perceived effect of Covid-19 pandemic on rural women was measured using a 5-point likert-typed scale, where Strongly Disagreed =1, Disagreed =2, Undecided =3, Agreed =4 and strongly agreed =5. The coping strategies used by rural women against the effects of covid-19 pandemic was measured using a 3-point likert typed scale, where Not used =1, Rarely used =2, Always used =3. Data were analysed using frequencies, mean, percentages and Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC). The result in table 1 reveals that the avoid hugging people ( ̅ = 1.67) was the highest ranked bio-security measure, avoid shaking of hands ( ̅ = 1.65) was the second ranked bio-security measure and maintaining of social distance and wearing of mask ( ̅ = 1.61). This result implies that the most frequently used biosecurity measures by the respondents was to avoid hugging, avoid shaking of hands, and maintaining of social distance and wearing of masks.

Sources: Field Survey 2020
The result in table 2 reveals that the awareness that covid-19 has been declared as a pandemic disease by World Health Organisation ( ̅ = 1.00) was the highest ranked knowledge statement, the knowledge statement that covid-19 is a viral disease ( ̅ = 0.99) was ranked second, the knowledge statement that covid-19 can be contacted through shaking of hands and hugging of infected person and use of facemask, observing personal hygiene and social distance are effective in preventing covid-19 ( ̅ = 0.96) was ranked third, covid-19 spreads through respiratory droplets in the air from coughing and sneezing ( ̅ = 0.95). This implies that there is high level of awareness of Covid-19 pandemic outbreak and the various means of contacting it among the respondents. There is need to educate people on covid-19 as FAO (2020) reported that lack of information hinders the fight against covid-19 pandemic. The result in table 3 reveals that the increase in price of goods and services ( ̅ = 4.59) was the highest ranked perceived effect of covid-19 pandemic on the respondents spend more on household's food consumption ̅ = 4.48) was ranked second and reduced or loss of income and, high incidence of hunger and food insecurity ( ̅ = 4.46) was ranked as the third highest ranked perceived effect of covid-19 pandemic on the respondents. This implies that high cost of goods and services, reduced or loss of income and food insecurity was the most severe effects of covid-19 pandemic on the respondents in the study area. The implication of this is that the rural women would experience food-insecurity and there would be high incident of poverty among the rural women. This result is in agreement with the findings of World Farmers Organization (2020) which reported that Covid-19 pandemic created several shocks that affected the world food system. Also, Siche (2020), reported that food demand and thus food security are greatly affected due to mobility restrictions, reduced purchasing power, and with a greater impact on the most vulnerable population groups.
The results in table 4 reveals that rearing of animals ( ̅ = 1.46) was the highest ranked coping strategy adopted by the respondents against covid-19, change in lifestyle ( ̅ = 1.44) was the second highest ranked coping strategy and taking additional job and labour opportunities ( ̅ =1.39) was the third ranked coping strategy. This implies that covid-19 pandemic affected the means of livelihoods of the respondents that they had to find several ways of adjusting their lifestyle by seek additional ways of getting income. This result is in agreement with the findings of Prokopy et al., (2015) who reported that different strategies needs to be taken to mitigate the negative effects of covid-19 on the people so as to achieve food security.
Ho 1 : There is no significant relationship between the Perceived Effects of Covid-19 pandemic and coping strategies used by the respondents against the effects of Covid-19 Pandemic.   Coping strategies and Perceived Effects of Covid-19 Pandemic -0.207 xx 0.057 Significant XXsignificant at 10% The result in table 5 reveals that there is an inverse relationship between coping strategies and perceived effects of covid-19 pandemic (r=-0.207, p=0.057) at 10% level of significance. This implies that the higher the coping strategies against the effects of covid-19 pandemic, the less the effects of covid-pandemic on the respondents in the study area. This implies that the coping strategies are effective in cushioning the negative effects of covid-19 pandemic on the respondents.

CONCLUSION
Based on the findings of this study, the study concluded that the most frequently used biosecurity measures by the respondents was to avoid hugging, avoid shaking of hands, and maintaining of social distance and wearing of masks. The high cost of goods and services, reduced or loss of income and food insecurity was the most severe effects of covid-19 pandemic on the respondents in the study area. Rearing of animals, change in lifestyle and taking additional job and labour opportunities were the main coping strategies used by the respondents in the study area.

RECOMMENDATION
1. There should be further creation of more awareness and provision of health education to the rural women on the covid-19 pandemic. 2. There should be provision of welfare support inform of food supply, health care services, farming inputs and grants to rural women. 3. Government should create more job opportunities for the rural women.