Assessing women s empowerment among rice farming households in Bangladesh, Eastern India, and Nepal M.L. Malabayabas, T. Paris, and D. Gauchan
Importance of Rice in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal It accounts for 32% of world s rice area Staple food and livelihood for 400 Million poor people (below $1.25/day) Rice accounts for 73 %, 40% and 30% of calorie intake in Bangladesh, Nepal and India, respectively. Rainfed ecosystem common in the three location
Yield (t/ha) Rice yield trends (1971-2010) 4.50 4.18 t/ha 4.00 Bangladesh India Nepal 3.50 3.26 t/ha 3.00 2.50 2.72 t/ha 2.00 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1.50 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 1.00 1991 1992 1993 1994 Year
Yield (t/ha) Rice yield trends in South Asia (1971-2008) (Rainfed region and season) 6.00 BLD-Aman E.India Nepal 5.00 4.00 3.00 2.00 1.00 0.00 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 Years 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Yield (t/ha) Rice yield trends in South Asia (1971-2008) (Rainfed region and season) 6.00 5.00 BLD-Boro E.India BLD-Aman Nepal 4.00 3.00 2.00 1.00 0.00 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 Years 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Estimated stress-prone rice area in Bangladesh, India, and Nepal (wet season) Submergence 9%-55% Drought 10%-19% Murali, Nelson, Thenkabail, and Singh, 2011
Stress Characterization Drought Submergence Salinity (coastal) Frequency Once in 2-3 years Once in 2-5 years Regular Duration 20-45 days 3-30 days Dry season & early wet season Timing Jun-Jul (early), Sep-Oct (terminal) Jul-Sep Mar-Jun
Key Questions What are the roles of women in stress-prone areas? What are the women s contribution in terms of labor participation in rice farming and income? What are the factors influencing women empowerment?
Women Empowerment Index A measure used in assessing women empowerment using 16 gender-related indicators Decisions pertaining to rice production and overall activities of rice farming households in stressprone areas
Women empowerment index WE var i 16 i 1 X i 16 N = 16 indicators (decisions which pertains to rice production, income allocation, and other livelihood activities) Ratings: 1 = husband solely makes the decision 2 = husband makes the decision even the wife is present 3 = husband and wife make the decision 4 = wife makes the decision even the husband is present 5 = wife solely makes the decision
STRASA Baseline Survey Sites India: 11 districts Bangladesh: 5 districts Nepal: 3 districts Total households: 1,900 GIS, IRRI
Key results: Household characteristics Gender of HH heads: Mainly male dominated Household size: Average of 5-6 members Age of the respondent: Middle age between 44-48 years Female 38-50 years Respondent s education: 4-6 years of schooling Female 2-4 years Primary occupation: Agriculture for 85%-93%
Farm characteristics Bangladesh Eastern India Nepal Average farm size (ha) 0.21 0.43 0.29 Gross rice area to gross cropped area (%) 97 78 50 Cropping intensity 148 106 165 Area under modern variety (%) 93.1 66.1 87.5
Locations Income sources Nepal Eastern India Non-farm Farm/off-farm/sale animals Non-rice Rice Bangladesh 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Percentage of incom e (%)
Sources of income Non-Farm Income sources (male) Small-scale Bangladesh Eastern India Nepal Remittance Pension Others Fruits Forestry Fishing Business Bangladesh 63.6% eastern India 80.2% Nepal 93.3% Salary 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 Percentage of male non-farm income (%)
Activities Female participation in rice farming Postharvest activities Bangladesh eastern India Nepal Threshing Harvesting Irrigation Weeding Application of organic fertilizer Crop establishment methods Land preparation 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 Share of women (%)
Women empowerment Index (WEI) in Bangladesh, eastern India, and Nepal Decision-making Bangladesh eastern India What rice variety(ies) to grow 2 1 2 Who and number of farm laborers to hire 2 1 2 Whether to sell/consume harvested crop 4 4 3 Quantity of output to sell and consume 4 4 4 When and where to sell the harvested crop 2 1 2 What price at which to sell the output 1 1 2 What farm implements to purchase 2 1 2 Whether to slaughter and sell animals 2 2 2 Adoption of technology in rice production 2 1 2 Allocation of farm income 2 2 2 Allocation of household income 3 2 3 What types of food to consume in times of crisis 3 3 3 Children s education 3 3 3 Number of children to raise 3 3 3 Participation in voting/politics 3 2 3 Where to borrow 2 2 2 Overall WEI 2 2 3 Nepal
Percentage of hh (%) WEI of the households 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Husband only (1) Husband>Wife (2) Husband=Wife (3) Husband < Wife (4) Wife (5) Rating Bangladesh eastern India Nepal
Factors affecting WEI (Probit analysis) H>W=1 and H=W=0 VARIABLES Probit coefficient Marginal Effects Age of the wife 0.000698 0.0002 Years of education (wife) -0.0170-0.0055 Share of female labor (%) 0.00272 0.0009 Share of female income (%) 0.00241 0.0008 Farm size (ha) 0.111* 0.0362 Percentage of MV (% area) 0.00409*** 0.0013 Percentage of rice sold (%) -0.00656*** -0.0021 Stress_sub (1=submergence; 0 otherwise) -0.148-0.0481 Stress_drought (1=drought; 0 otherwise) -0.204-0.0678 Poor_nonpoor (1=poor; 0 otherwise) -0.485** -0.1349 Country_India (1=India; 0 otherwise) 0.826*** 0.2746 Constant 0.417* *** p<0.01, ** p<0.05, * p<0.1
Summary and Implication Men had more opportunities to engage in non-farm jobs than women (63%-93%). Remittances from migration has become the important source of non-farm income in Nepal. Limited women empowerment across the three countries. Farm size, area under modern varieties, share of rice sold are the major factors influencing the empowerment among women. Focus on areas where women has high decision-making authority like post-harvest and marketing activities (trainings on seed management practices)