Joyce M. Chitja (PhD)University of Kwazulu-

Natal, South Africa

WOMEN’ ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT IN THE FACE OF CLIMATE CHANGE & FOOD

INSECURITY

Focus of rural farming womenFocus on rural women who turn to agriculture for livelihoods and economic empowerment

Disclaimer

INTRODUCTION

Although climate change is prominent in food security discourse, there is poor attention paid to the role of women.

Women are at the epicentre for feeding their families.

Women are dependent on natural resources (land, water, wood).

Women’s access to these resources is limited (gender, culture and practices).

Empowerment

A concept with many definitions… Kabeer (2001), according to which

empowerment describes “the expansion in people's ability to make strategic life choices in a context where this ability was previously denied to them” (Kabeer 2001).

Why women are important in the Climate Change debate Women are important agents of change for

climate mitigation and adaptation remains untapped.

Women’s extensive theoretical and practical knowledge of the environment and resource conservation is not given due consideration.

given their vast knowledge, are able to develop and disseminate innovative cultivation methods that are adapted to climate change.

Key Challenges in improving food Insecurity Women are usually responsible for

providing the family with its basic nutrition,

Women have poor access to and weak control over land rights, ownership, means of production and technology, lack finances, information and training, e.g., in climate adaptation and disaster prevention (Rodenberg 2009).

Climate-induced crop failure puts the food security of the entire population at risk (Denton 2002: 14).

Opportunities

Less attention is paid to the potential that lies in the combination of climate mitigation/ adaptation and the economic empowerment of women.

Mitigation or adaptation activities offer opportunities to advance the economic empowerment of women.

In South Africa, 6

million black individuals

practise smallholder agriculture,

among which 92% are

subsistence farmers, and

61% are women.

(Stats SA, Labour Force Survey, 2000-07)

CASE: SWAYIMANE KZN & LIMPOPO

RESEARCH PROBLEM & CONTEXTWHAT ROLE DOES GENDER PLAY IN ACCESS TO RESOURCESS KEY FOR LAND BASED LIVELIHOODS THAT LEADS TO WOMEN’S ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENTEconomically empowering women is essential both to realize women’s rights and to achieve broader development goals such as economic growth, poverty reduction, health, education and welfare. Secure access to natural resources for the ultra poor women is important for improved livelihoods (Thamaga-Chitja et al 2010).

KEY-Definitions:

A woman is economically empowered when she has both the ability to succeed and advance economically and the power to make and act on economic decisions (International Centre of Research on Women)

Agency is defined as a set of concepts around people-centred development that allows people to take own actions to meet their needs, manage risks and make progress towards achieving their aspirations (Bennett 2002).

Participatory Approaches employing mixed methods:Case study methodologySustainable Livelihoods Analysis (SLA):Purposive sampling within cases: Focus groups

METHODS

RESULTS-RESOURCES/ASSETS/WEIA • Human Asset Gaps

• New and Demanded crops • Agro-chemical use • Non-conventional

methods (agroecological) • Protective clothing • Monolinguliasm• Poor and no record

keeping, poor financial planning

• Poor to no market linked crop scheduling

Agency link: Dependent upon financial and spatial limitation rather than knowledge and capability constraints (institutions are key)

IDENTIFIED INSTITUTIONS-barriers/enhancing ability and power

Traditional Chief ( & State) (true for Swayimane)

Marriage State extension services Civic Organisations Market Agents (formal &

informal) Agrochemical companies Welfare (Grants)

Institutions structure people’s access to assets and capabilities, ie structure how agency is enhanced or hindered.

KEY INSTITUTIONS LINKS TO AGENCY

Cont…

Poorly capacitated to resolve technical issues related to production and marketing, women negatively affected.

Current key function is reporting and discussion of problem to “tell” the extension officer.

FARMERS GROUP MEETINGS

Enhancing Agency We can do

this…

THE ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT JOURNEY

CURRENT FUTURE

ABILITY= skills + resources

POWER= possessing agency, decision making, control over profits

Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI)

A composite measure tool that indicates women’s control over critical parts of their lives in the hh, community and economy

Identifies disempowered women & hw to increase autonomy and decision making

tracks empowerment, useful for policy making

Piloted in Bangladesh, Guatemala and Uganda

Measures empowerment, agency and women’s inclusion in agriculture

WEAI = 5DE + Gender Parity index

WEAI

• 5DE measure of how many domains women are empowered in– Decisions about agricultural production– Access to + decisions about productive

resources– Control over use of income– Leadership in the community– Time use

• Gender parity – a percentage of women who are as empowered as men in their households

Key findings

Mafefe Steelpoort

Rambuda Total

Disempowered Women Head Count

31% 55% 39% 41.2%

Empowered WHC

69% 45% 61% 58.5%

5DE 0.58 0.49 0.55 0.54

KE A LEBOGA