This study was undertaken in order to determine the contribution of the Chogoria Hospital's health education programme to the development of women in the Meru communities of the Kenyan highlands. The research was designed within the framework of the Gender And Development theory, focussing on the social structures and relations underlying women's development needs. The objectives were based on a review of the literature. Field research was then conducted over a three month period in Chogoria, Kenya. The research was based in ethnographic methodology, consisting of participant observation and interviews. The study found that the programme contributes to and perpetuates the traditional social structures and relations of Meru society, including the dominance of men over women. The programme's approach to participatory development was found to empower the existing power structure of Meru communities, obscure the development needs of women and increase their burdens of labour and responsibility. The study offers several recommendations to enable the CHD to better meet the needs of Meru women. The recommendations address the following issues: the commitment of the CHD to the empowerment of the community, of volunteers and of women; the role of dialogue and education about women, their potential and possibilities; the alleviation of women's burdens of labour and responsibilities; the placement of women's health and development at the centre of the CHD agenda; and the training of CHD staff in the full spectrum of community participatory development.

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