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Women’s participation in agriculture
Produce 60-80% of food supply in most developing countries
54% of those economically active in agriculture are women
Women produce half of the world’s food overall
In Southeast Asia, women provide up to 90% of labor for rice cultivation
In sub-Saharan Africa, women produce up to 80% of basic foodstuffs for consumption and sale
Women perform 25-45% of agricultural work in Colombia and Peru
Women make up 53% of agricultural workers in Egypt
FAO official in 1998
“Despite the fact that women are the world’s principal food producers and providers, they remain ‘invisible’ partners in development. A lack of available gender disaggregated data means that women’s contribution to agriculture is poorly understood and their specific needs ignored in development planning.”
Women participate in agriculture as….
Unpaid family workers
“Own-account” workers or entrepreneurs
Wage workers
While families sometimes work together, there is usually a gender division of labor in agriculture
Male farming systems tend to be based on plow technology
Female farming systems tend to be based on hoe technology
Men and women often produce different crops
Women often grow “home gardens”
Home gardens:
Are exclusively for household consumption
Contain complex combinations of crops
Provide variety for dietAre easily accessible for work and
harvesting
How do women’s agricultural activities differ from men’s?
Women produce a larger proportion of staple crops (wheat, corn, millet) than non-staples (like tobacco, coffee, sugar)
More of the crops that women produce are consumed by the family and not marketed
Therefore, women’s agricultural production has a more direct effect on family nutrition
How does women’s agricultural production affect child well-being?
Studies have shown that women are more likely to use scarce resources to feed children than men are (Haddad, Hoddinott and Alderman 1997, Smith and Chavas 1997).
Women as conservators of agricultural knowledge and biodiversity
Because women grow more “traditional” crops, they may have specialized knowledge of local plant varieties (rather than using imported seeds)
Because women grow a greater variety of crops, they become managers of seed stocks and agricultural bio-diversity
In home gardens, women grow and experiment with specialized plants for medicinal purposes, spices, etc.
Researchers of the 1970s and 80s argued that as agriculture modernized, women’s role would decrease
Because introducing plows in order to increase production would shift responsibility to men
Because gender rules in many societies would make new technologies, credit, and inputs more easily available to men
Because Western development agencies tend to target male farmers
Problems women face in upgrading their
agricultural practices
Difficulties obtaining land titles or secure tenure
A study of five African countries found that women receive less than 10% of available agricultural credit
Only 15% of the world’s agricultural extension agents are women, and most extension services are focused on cash crops
FAO has found that most new farm tools are designed for men
Some factors leading to “feminization of agriculture”
Male out-migration from rural areas
Warfare
Male mortality from HIV/AIDS
Some effects of feminization of agriculture
Women are taking over crops and chores formerly done by men as well as their own tasks, leading to vastly increased workload
Increased workload may make it necessary to adjust cropping patterns and farming systems
Increases in workload may make it difficult to maintain farming infrastructure
What kinds of support do women farmers need?Secure access to land and titling
Labor saving technologies, new and appropriate tools
Access to credit and inputs
Rural organizations that can help them obtain resources and represent their interests
In the fruit-picking sector, 75% of women work more than 60 hours a week in season, on temporary contracts.