tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/women-farmers-25632/articleswomen farmers – The Conversation2022-06-28T11:58:21Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1843782022-06-28T11:58:21Z2022-06-28T11:58:21ZIntensifying heat waves threaten South Asia’s struggling farmers – increasingly, it’s women who are at risk<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470391/original/file-20220622-15-g0h7wo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C23%2C3937%2C2593&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Increasingly, it's women who are harvesting crops as heat waves worsen.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/an-indian-woman-farm-labourer-saboo-uses-a-scythe-to-news-photo/112509153">Narinder Nanu/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Sitting in a semi-circle in the yard outside of a village school in Nepal, a group of farmers share their concerns about the future. They discuss how the rain is unreliable – droughts and floods are both becoming more common. The heat is overwhelming before the rains come.</p>
<p>In April, May and June, extreme heat makes it harder to work, crops wilt and sometimes die, and livestock get sick. </p>
<p>All of the young farmers in this schoolyard are women, most in red saris. The few men present are elderly. Young men don’t live here anymore. As the crops fail more often, the men take contracts for migrant work, handing over papers and passports to recruiters who organize travel to nearby cities or faraway countries. </p>
<p>As climate change, and particularly <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en/media/news/climate-change-made-heatwaves-india-and-pakistan-30-times-more-likely">heat waves, worsen </a>for South Asia’s farmers, women are increasingly left to try to make crops grow in the oppressive heat.</p>
<p>We are <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=vMzuirsAAAAJ&hl=en">sociologists</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=zFnNpNoAAAAJ&hl=en">who study</a> how climate change influences health and well-being, with a particular focus on women and children, including communities like this one in South Asia. We are also interested in how interventions by governments and aid groups can alleviate these negative impacts. </p>
<h2>Record-breaking heat</h2>
<p>According to the Indian Meteorological Department, 2021 was the fifth-warmest year in India since 1901, and it capped the <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/india-getting-warmer-hotter-2021-fifth-warmest-year-since-1901-says-imd-122011401133_1.html">hottest 10-year span on record in the country</a>. In 2022, the region has seen <a href="https://www.worldweatherattribution.org/climate-change-made-devastating-early-heat-in-india-and-pakistan-30-times-more-likely/">record-breaking and unrelenting heat</a> from March through June, with temperatures reaching 47 degrees Celsius (116 F) in India and 51 C (124 F) in Pakistan.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A globe showing extreme heat across India, with much of the country hotter than the Sahara Desert." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470363/original/file-20220622-11-s1bnvq.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">An intense heat wave in April 2022 sent temperatures 8 to 15 degrees F (4.5 to 8.5 degrees C) above normal across India on the heels of the country’s hottest March in more than 120 years of record keeping. The maps show temperatures on April 27; 45 C is about 113 F.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149766/early-season-heat-waves-strike-india">Joshua Stevens/NASA Earth Observatory</a></span>
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<p>Researchers predict that even under an optimistic scenario in which the world takes bold enough steps to keep global warming to 1.5 C (2.7 F) compared with preindustrial times, South Asia will experience <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL091191">more frequent bouts of deadly heat</a>. Some areas in the region have already experienced temperatures outside of the range for human productivity and into dangerous territory for human survival. </p>
<p>These thresholds <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL091191">occur at wet-bulb temperatures</a> of around 32 C (89.6 F) and 35 C (95 F), respectively, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-hot-is-too-hot-for-the-human-body-our-lab-found-heat-humidity-gets-dangerous-faster-than-many-people-realize-185593">and can be lower</a>. Wet-bulb temperatures take into account both the air temperature and relative humidity. Hot and humid conditions lead to a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaw1838">greater risk of heat stress</a>, as humans are less able to cool their bodies through sweating.</p>
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<img alt="Women aerate grain, flipping it into the air with woven pads." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470392/original/file-20220622-15-a1xzhc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Heat can make already labor-intensive work more difficult.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/bangladeshi-farmers-aerate-harvested-products-ahead-of-the-news-photo/1240636850">Mohammad Shajahan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Some of the hardest-hit areas have been <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-india-heat-wave-farmers/">agricultural regions</a> such as the Indian states of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. There, crop losses affect household food supplies as well as income. The crop damage is especially troubling as these are wheat-producing regions that are seeing yields drop by 50% at the same time that the conflict in Ukraine <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2022/04/heat-wave-scorches-indias-wheat-crop-singes-its-export-plans/">raises concerns over wheat shortages for 2022</a>. India <a href="https://www.fas.usda.gov/data/india-india-bans-wheat-exports-due-domestic-supply-concerns">banned wheat exports</a> in May 2022 in an effort to control domestic prices. </p>
<h2>Why gender matters</h2>
<p>All these trends are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/ruso.12439">particularly concerning from a gender perspective</a>, as our research in India, Nepal and Bangladesh shows. </p>
<p>As heat rises, women are more likely to work in agriculture. We find that this is particularly true for women with little education, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13547860.2017.1394569">previous research</a> suggests impoverished women are most likely to take agricultural work, because of a lack of other opportunities. While men can migrate for work, norms about women’s responsibilities to stay at home and care for children and the elderly leave them with few other opportunities to make a living. </p>
<p>Because of rural people’s dependence on agricultural work and the outdoor exposed nature of that work, women face <a href="https://extension.psu.edu/heat-illness-and-agriculture">exceptional health risks because of heat exposure</a>. Yet compared with urban areas, rural areas tend to have less access to <a href="https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/energy-speak/hotter-days-ahead-but-cooling-india-can-t-be-only-about-air-conditioning/4058">air conditioning</a>, <a href="https://www.csis.org/files/publication/100715_Hate_PublicHealthSouthAsia_Web.pdf">health resources</a> and <a href="https://idl-bnc-idrc.dspacedirect.org/bitstream/handle/10625/58945/IDL%20-%2058945.pdf?sequence=2">other tools</a> that could combat heat dangers.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Four women sit or squat as they harvest long jute rods next to a pond." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470393/original/file-20220622-25-47ghvr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Harvesting jute, as these women were doing in Bangladesh in August 2021, and other crops often means being in direct sunshine all day long.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/women-farmers-from-the-munshiganj-village-during-the-jute-news-photo/1234844946">Maruf Rahman / Eyepix Group/Future Publishing via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Farmers also face more stress than other workers when their income is threatened by heat, because agricultural success is intrinsically linked with climate. Agricultural failures are associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1701354114">farmer suicide</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.18063/ijps.v6i1.1183">post-traumatic stress and other mental health concerns</a>. </p>
<p>In situations where farmers are providing food for their own families, agricultural failures also mean decreased food security. Women-headed farming households have been found to be <a href="http://erepository.uonbi.ac.ke/handle/11295/6175">particularly vulnerable to food insecurity</a>, as they have more limited access to land, education, financial resources, weather information and modern agricultural technologies than farms headed by men. Thus, climate change in rural areas is becoming an increasingly gendered problem.</p>
<p><a href="https://climate.nasa.gov/news/3176/nasas-ecostress-detects-heat-islands-in-extreme-indian-heat-wave/">Heat certainly remains a concern for urban dwellers</a>. Yet urban economies are more diverse and less climate dependent, and urban areas are better equipped with <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/how-cities-are-using-nature-keep-heatwaves-bay">resources to combat heat risks</a>. <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/power-cuts-exacerbateheat-agony-in-the-state/articleshow/91243703.cms">Public health officials worry</a> that those in rural areas lack knowledge about heat risks and what they need to do to prevent heat-related illness.</p>
<h2>Solutions big and small</h2>
<p>To help south Asia’s female farmers, governments and aid groups need to understand the particular risks they face. Researchers are making strides in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-018-2233-z">mapping out hot spots</a> in India where gender and agricultural conditions make female farmers more vulnerable.</p>
<p>Governments and aid organizations can help those groups in a variety of ways, from mitigating heat’s effects on humans and agricultural production to <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3430491">providing new economic opportunities</a> for rural women. Nongovernmental organizations are already working to spread simple solutions that can help rural farmers stay cooler, like <a href="https://scroll.in/article/842568/with-a-touch-of-reflective-paint-women-in-an-ahmedabad-slum-are-beating-extreme-heat">covering roofs with solar-reflective paint</a> to keep homes from heating up.</p>
<p>Scientists in India have also <a href="https://theprint.in/india/answer-to-climate-shocks-heat-resistant-wheat-from-icar-hits-markets-grows-in-100-days/996689/">developed a heat-resistant wheat variety</a>. Elsewhere, scientists are working on “<a href="https://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/scientists-develop-new-climate-proof-crops-with-help-of-nuclear-technology">climate-proofing” other crops</a> and <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/from-traditional-practice-to-top-climate-solution-agroecology-gets-growing-attention/">looking to traditional practices that enhance agriculture’s resilience</a> to climate change, such as growing a more diverse mix of crops and using farm byproducts like manure as fertilizer.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man in dress pants and short-sleeve shirt looks into a greenhouse where rice plants are growing." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470395/original/file-20220622-29730-ohbks1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A scientist in China inspects rice bred to withstand the impacts of global warming.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/climate-warming-agriculture-rice-feature-by-cecil-morella-news-photo/76139928?adppopup=true">Luis Liwanag/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Additional efforts include crop insurance to help support farmers when heat does decrease yields. Crop insurance <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2019/08/22/the-poor-who-most-need-insurance-are-least-likely-to-have-it">has low adoption rates among the poor</a> in low- and middle-income countries. Small-scale farmers may not qualify for insurance because of their farm’s small size or because their crops are grown primarily to feed their family. Some strategies that have been used to increase its use include <a href="https://www.lse.ac.uk/granthaminstitute/expert-stakeholder-workshop-and-round-table-discussions-with-farmers-on-crop-insurance-and-climate-resilience-in-maharashtra-india">expanding insurance beyond cash crops</a> to include crops families eat and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-food-africa-india/millions-of-poor-farmers-to-benefit-from-new-type-of-insurance-study-idUSKBN0L21WH20150129">lowering thresholds for coverage</a>. Insurers must also be willing to recognize women as farmers. Many female farmers have struggled to receive <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-017-8616-4_17#Fn1">agricultural assistance because of gender bias</a>.</p>
<p>More broadly, efforts to slow climate change on a global scale are what is most needed to help South Asia’s female farmers. As the world is increasingly likely to <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/resources/spm-headline-statements/">surpass a 1.5-degree Celsius warming scenario in the near future</a>, it becomes critical to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/south-asia-heat-waves-temperature-rise-global-warming-climate-change">most harmful heat scenarios</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/184378/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emily M L Southard receives funding from the Pennsylvania State University Population Research Institute (5P2CHD041025-17).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heather Randell receives funding from the Pennsylvania State University Population Research Institute (5P2CHD041025-17).</span></em></p>As crops fail in the rising heat, men are leaving many rural areas for migrant work in cities. Women are left to tend to the farming in increasingly dangerous conditions.Emily M L Southard, Ph.D. Candidate in Rural Sociology and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Penn StateHeather Randell, Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology and Demography, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1592762021-05-02T07:46:17Z2021-05-02T07:46:17ZTrying to understand the use of drugs by women farmers in Nigeria’s Adamawa State<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/397040/original/file-20210426-21-1v48e0r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Increasing poverty is forcing more women to become farmers in Adamawa State.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/african-woman-in-traditional-clothes-standing-royalty-free-image/1170096581?adppopup=true">dmbaker/Getty Images </a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/statistics/Drugs/Drug_Use_Survey_Nigeria_2019_BOOK.pdf">A national survey</a> on drug use in Nigeria published in 2019 shows that about 14.3 million Nigerians between 15 and 65 years have used psychoactive substances for non-medical purposes. One out of every four drug users is a woman.</p>
<p>We conducted <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15332640.2021.1871694">research</a> on the use of drugs among women farmers in Adamawa State, north east Nigeria. These women are involved in the cultivation of food crops such as maize, beans and rice. </p>
<p>We wanted to find out if they used drugs in a bid to enhance their farming livelihood practices. We also wanted to understand the implications for health and their relationships in the community. </p>
<p>We used data collected from interviews and observations with 50 people who included farmers, business men and women involved in agricultural business, civil servants as well as artisans and unemployed young people. One clear observation that emerged was that more women were becoming the household breadwinners and that this meant that they were under a lot of pressure. </p>
<p>To be able to withstand the stress of farming and to help improve their productivity, some used psychotropic stimulants. These change nervous system function and result in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behaviour. The most used substances were cannabis and tramadol due to affordability and availability. </p>
<p>The study recommended that the government of Adamawa State should establish a rehabilitation centre for addicts in the state. We also recommended that all stakeholders should give empowerment of women in the state serious attention. </p>
<h2>Farming in Adamawa State</h2>
<p>Over 60% of farmers in Adamawa State are women. They work on the land as owners or as hired help. Some are both: they own land and can also be hired to work on another person’s farm. </p>
<p>There are several reasons that women attempt to earn a living off the land. One is rising poverty. The <a href="https://taxaide.com.ng/2020/05/28/2019-poverty-and-inequality-report-in-nigeria/">2019 report on Poverty and Inequality in Nigeria</a> released by the National Bureau of Statistics showed that over 75% of the population of Adamawa State was poor. </p>
<p>The state was only better than Sokoto State (87.73%), Taraba State (87.72%), Jigawa State (87.02%) and Ebonyi (79.76%). The most affected demographic group is women. One of the ways they deal with poverty is to take on farming activities, to feed their families.</p>
<p>The use of substance abuse is not new in the area. A rise in drug and substance abuse was a major reason for the enactment of Adamawa State Unclassified (Local Substance) Abuse Law in 2015. Unfortunately, the law has not led to the intended reduction in substance abuse. </p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>Women in the research team conducted interviews with women farmers and drug sellers. </p>
<p>They asked general questions to explore why women were involved in farming rather than other ways of making a living. The interviewers also asked why respondents were involved in use of drugs. </p>
<p>Questions were also asked about what kind of drugs or substances were used and what effect these had.</p>
<p>Over 60% of respondents said that drug use among female farmers in Adamawa State was a common phenomenon. About 36% did not share this view.</p>
<p>Only four of those we interviewed would talk about their use of drugs and substances. </p>
<p>One woman farmer who answered these questions said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We are human beings. No matter how strong we are, we still get tired while working especially when it is a tedious and strenuous work like farming. We need to take something (like drugs or substances) to prevent quick tiredness and get our work done promptly.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>While there will be health and social consequences of drug use among these women farmers, it is very difficult to track this. This is because data, especially on mental and psychological distress, are generally not available in Adamawa State.</p>
<h2>Next steps</h2>
<p>We recommended the establishment of a rehabilitation centre by the State government would go a long way in helping people who are addicted to drugs. Adamawa State law prohibiting drug addiction and recommending establishment of a rehabilitation centre was passed in 2015. This law has come into operation, but the rehabilitation centre has yet to be established.</p>
<p>It is also recommended that women be empowered by training them in vocational skills and setting them up in small scale businesses. This is necessary because women have become strong economic agents in the state.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159276/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Saheed Babajide Owonikoko does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Drug abuse among women farmers in Adamawa State, north east Nigeria, is rising.Saheed Babajide Owonikoko, Researcher, Centre for Peace and Security Studies, Modibbo Adama University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1550832021-03-11T13:31:16Z2021-03-11T13:31:16ZWomen grow as much as 80% of India’s food – but its new farm laws overlook their struggles<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388852/original/file-20210310-23-vt1aa6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C9%2C3277%2C1860&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Planting paddy saplings in Patiala, India. Three-quarters of Indian farmers are women, but most don't own their land.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/women-plant-paddy-sapling-in-a-field-in-village-ramgarh-on-news-photo/1222267130?adppopup=true">Bharat Bhushan/Hindustan Times via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Indian women are left behind on farms to make ends meet as <a href="http://www.ihdindia.org/sarnet/module1/TumbeMissingMenMigrationandLaborMarketsinIndia.pdf">more men in India migrate from rural areas to cities</a>, seeking higher incomes and better jobs. </p>
<p>Nearly <a href="https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/304918/bn-when-women-farm-india's-land-increasing-ownership-301013-en.pdf">75% of the full-time workers on Indian farms are women</a>, according to the international humanitarian group OXFAM. Female farmers produce 60% to 80% of the South Asian country’s food.</p>
<p>So it’s little surprise women are playing a visible role in the monthslong nationwide protests against <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/12/roaring-crowds-roti-and-rihanna-the-view-from-a-delhi-farm-protest-camp">agricultural reforms</a> passed last September by the Indian government. </p>
<p>Small farmers are particularly vulnerable to three new laws, which deregulated the agricultural market and weakened the government-established minimum sale price for crops in ways that, demonstrators say, could pit small farmers against big agribusiness firms.</p>
<p>And women, as the most marginal of India’s small farmers, may suffer the most if the laws go into effect.</p>
<p>“We barely have any land. If that too is gifted to [billionaires], then what will we eat?” 69-year-old Surinder Kaur, a member of the Kisan Sabha farmers union, told the <a href="https://thewire.in/agriculture/women-farmers-protest-dilli-challo">Indian digital news site The Wire</a> when asked why she was protesting.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Dozens of Indian women look solemnly defiant riding in the back of a truck" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388849/original/file-20210310-17-5k6wgs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Indian farmers leave a protest in February 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/indian-women-farmers-leave-back-from-protest-site-at-tikri-news-photo/1231614478?adppopup=true">Muzamil Mattoo/NurPhoto via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Invisible, unpaid labor force</h2>
<p>In a given crop season, when fields are sown and harvested, women farmers in India work about <a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2020/02/women-bear-burden-indias-water-crisis/">3,300 hours</a>, double the 1,860 hours their male counterparts put into farming.</p>
<p>Yet their work feeding their families and the country remains <a href="https://thewire.in/agriculture/women-farmers-protest-dilli-challo">undervalued and largely overlooked by the government</a>. </p>
<p>“Women become de facto farm managers when men shift to non-farm
jobs, but are not recognized as such because they seldom own the farm,” <a href="https://magazine.outlookindia.com/story/india-news-the-invisible-farmers/304184">according to</a> the Indian development economist Bina Agarwal.</p>
<p><a href="https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/304918/bn-when-women-farm-india's-land-increasing-ownership-301013-en.pdf">One-third of female farmers</a> in India are unpaid laborers on family farms owned by their parents, husbands or in-laws, according to OXFAM. Indian women own just <a href="https://www.indiaspend.com/73-2-of-rural-women-workers-are-farmers-but-own-12-8-land-holdings/">12.8% of the country’s land</a>. </p>
<p>The imbalance in access to property has partly to do with India’s inheritance laws. Hindu, Jain, Sikh and Buddhist women in India were given <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/sc-gives-equal-inheritance-right-to-daughters-from-1956/articleshow/77493244.cms">equal inheritance rights to ancestral property</a> in 2005 – legally, if not always in practice. Women of other faiths have separate personal laws governing property rights in India. </p>
<p>Since over <a href="https://www.news18.com/news/immersive/women-farmers-of-india.html">90% of agricultural land</a> in India is transferred through inheritance, women remain stuck as laborers for generation after generation, never <a href="https://thewire.in/women/nfhs-5-data-womens-empowerment">owning the land they work, or even their own homes</a>.</p>
<h2>No title, no money</h2>
<p>Women with strong property and inheritance rights <a href="https://www.landesa.org/wp-content/uploads/Girls-and-Land-A-Briefer-on-Landesas-Girls-Project-June-2018.pdf">earn nearly four times more</a> money, the land rights nonprofit organization Landesa stated in a 2018 report. </p>
<p>Land is an asset that can be used not only for agricultural production but also as collateral to access credit, government programs that support farmers, even pensions. But to get these opportunities, a land title is required. An OXFAM study in Uttar Pradesh state found that <a href="https://www.oxfam.org/en/india-women-farmers-persevere">just 4% of female farmers have access to institutional credit</a>. </p>
<p>When three-quarters of all a country’s farmers are women, their problems become a problem for the entire nation. Researchers in India call this the “<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13547860.2017.1394569?journalCode=rjap20">feminization of its agrarian distress</a>.” </p>
<p>And India’s agriculture problems are severe indeed. Farmers face declining plot sizes, degraded soils, scarce water and rising debt. In the past 25 years, over <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jul/31/suicides-of-nearly-60000-indian-farmers-linked-to-climate-change-study-claims">300,000 desperate, debt-ridden farmers</a> in the country have committed suicide.</p>
<p>Suicide rates for female farmers are often underrepresented in the data because of their lack of land titles, but the numbers are also increasing. <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2019/11/5/as-debt-grows-more-indian-women-farmers-taking-their-lives">According to the news site Al Jazeera</a>, which accessed a government database collected by local authorities in the Amravati district of the western Indian state of Maharashtra, an average of one female farmer there takes her own life each month. </p>
<p>“We plow the fields, and we feed the country. This struggle is for our rights,” Norinder Kaur, 70, told the <a href="https://www.thelily.com/at-indias-farmers-protests-these-women-are-reclaiming-their-space/">women’s news site The Lily at a protest on March 2</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Crowd of hundreds of women holding green flags and raising their fists in the streets" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388908/original/file-20210310-13-10ajvzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An International Women’s Day protest in New Delhi by Indian farmers and women’s organizations on March 8.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/indian-female-farmers-and-members-of-different-womens-non-news-photo/1231595842?adppopup=true">Imtiyaz Khan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Unequal market access</h2>
<p>One particular aspect of India’s new farm laws, the elimination of a government-regulated middleman agency from crop sales, is likely to have different outcomes for woman than for men.</p>
<p>For women, the government-regulated market negotiators were an <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/women-farmers-seek-to-scale-the-mandi-glass-ceiling/article31904597.ece">avenue for bargaining and price discovery</a> that did not require women to physically enter the male-dominated agricultural markets and haggle with traders over crop prices.</p>
<p>The Indian government says a freer market will enable farmers to sell or purchase agricultural produce anywhere in the country, helping them get a better price. But entrenched gender inequality makes Indian female farmers <a href="https://www.indiaspend.com/how-to-get-indias-women-working-first-let-them-out-of-the-house-74364">much less able to travel than men</a>, so their access to markets may now be limited.</p>
<p>However imperfect, India’s past agricultural regulations at least ensured that <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K4V9N0TBRIFoNo07ESYMp846WThDMVQ8/view">crop sale prices nationwide in India remained close to the price floor</a> set by the government, said the Mahila Kisan Adhikar Manch – an informal grouping of some 120 women farmers organizations and their allies – in a statement. </p>
<p>The group fears the new “era of fragmented and unregulated markets” will be even less “women farmer-friendly” than the old system.</p>
<h2>Limited access to justice</h2>
<p>India’s agricultural reforms may also hurt women’s ability to resolve agricultural disputes. </p>
<p>Under the <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-in-farm-laws-the-dispute-settlement-provision-govt-has-offered-to-roll-back-7106606/">new laws</a>, problems among the farmers and traders or agribusiness firms would be settled by a new agricultural board, not the local courts as is done now. </p>
<p>Women’s access to the legal system in India is <a href="https://www.barandbench.com/columns/international-womens-day-2019-the-plight-of-women-litigants-in-india">already limited</a>. But going forward, if agribusiness firms file a claim in a far-off jurisdiction, female farmers who lack access to transport and money to travel would be at an even greater disadvantage. </p>
<p>“We work on the fields too, and we put our sweat and blood into our day,” <a href="https://www.thelily.com/at-indias-farmers-protests-these-women-are-reclaiming-their-space/">said</a> Nimrat Deep Kaur, a 45-year-old agricultural laborer, interviewed at a Marchfarmers protest on March 2. “I am here so I can raise my voice as an equal with the men who are protesting.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155083/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Most Indian farmers are women. But few own their land, and gender inequality limits their access to markets. These issues won’t be fixed by recent agricultural reforms; in fact, they may get worse.Bansari Kamdar, Graduate Student, UMass BostonShreyasee Das, Assistant Professor, Temple UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1436662020-08-19T19:28:30Z2020-08-19T19:28:30ZHow to combat the sexism faced by women farmers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352070/original/file-20200810-22-1gih4h9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5040%2C3357&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Women farmers say they face sexism and dismissiveness, and are expected to juggle farm work with caregiving. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Piqsels)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Although women have played crucial roles throughout the history of Canadian agriculture and agri-food — from food production to processing and preparation — agriculture remains a male-dominated industry. Women currently comprise 29 per cent of farm operators nationally, and this number edges up only slightly with each new census. </p>
<p>In Saskatchewan, one of the country’s most productive agricultural regions, the percentage of women operators is even <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/95-640-x/2016001/article/14807-eng.htm">lower than the national average</a>, at 25 per cent. </p>
<p>In a <a href="https://wekh.ca/research/boosting-economic-growth-a-report-on-women-ag-entrepreneurship-in-saskatchewan/">new report</a> released by the <a href="https://wekh.ca">Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub</a> and the <a href="https://www.uregina.ca/business/">Hill-Levene Schools of Business</a> at the University of Regina, we examined the current situation for women entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan’s agriculture and agri-food sector. </p>
<p>Based on a detailed review of existing studies and statistics, as well as interviews with 32 people working across the agri-food chain, our report showed that despite ongoing barriers associated with gender inequality, women agriculture entrepreneurs are optimistic about the future. </p>
<h2>Stereotypes, sexism, invisible work</h2>
<p>Interview participants identified significant ongoing challenges for women across the sector. These challenges were mostly caused by stereotypes, sexism and women’s <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-503-x/2015001/article/54931-eng.htm">disproportionate responsibility for domestic and caregiving work</a>. Women’s agricultural work is commonly scheduled around caregiving responsibilities.</p>
<p>Interview participants emphasized that although women may perform different agricultural tasks than men, their contributions are no less important — despite being frequently overlooked. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman dressed in a purple turtleneck, jeans and rubber boots tends to three calves in a stall" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3594%2C2344&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352065/original/file-20200810-18-10n7a48.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Farmer Julia Bourque tends to female triplet calves named Love, Faith and Hope as they romp around their pen in November 2011 near Fredericton, N.B.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/ David Smith</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In primary production (farming and ranching), women shared stories of being talked over or dismissed by salespeople, lenders and even their own employees.</p>
<p>One woman told us: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“When you say that you’re a woman farmer, there’s that stereotype … you know: ‘Are you a farmer? Or do you just help your husband?’”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Women also report <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/54caa57de4b09cd878bfa0c1/t/57b37dbac534a5fd32ed746d/1471380923282/Needs+Assessment+Report+Final+to+be+released++072416.pdf">challenges accessing financial capital</a>. They are <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/96-325-x/2017001/article/54925-eng.pdf?st=C64jy9pZ">more likely than men to rent or lease their land</a> as opposed to owning it, and have smaller farms on average. </p>
<h2>‘The only woman in the room’</h2>
<p>Increased visibility, representation and decision-making power are important for women’s advancement in agriculture, but women remain under-represented in decision-making spheres. </p>
<p><a href="http://cwse-prairies.ca/pages/mentorship/docs/SAWANeedsAssessment.pdf">A study</a> by the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council found that women represent only 25 per cent of agriculture managers. The same study found that of 65 national and provincial farm associations, only 12 per cent had a woman as their board chair or president, 12 per cent had a woman vice-president or vice-chair, and just 28 per cent had at least one woman on their board’s executive committees. </p>
<p>Participants in our study described “old boys clubs” and the feeling of being the only woman (or one of few) at agricultural meetings. One woman said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“There’s people that don’t think that [agriculture is] your place, and you should have a man there who’s making all the decisions.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>One interview participant described how she had experienced unwanted sexual advances at a farm show, which further entrenches the notion of agricultural space as primarily a space for men.</p>
<h2>Optimism for the future</h2>
<p>Despite the challenges, women agriculture entrepreneurs (along with those in supportive industries or roles) are optimistic about the future. </p>
<p>Participants discussed how role models and supportive networks between women entrepreneurs in agriculture can help with confidence-building. </p>
<p>Women are leading advocacy efforts for mental health and for increased public understanding of agriculture, particularly through social media entrepreneurship. A participant noted that social media advocacy cannot be only about optics and visibility but should also help tackle key issues affecting women specifically.</p>
<p>Existing studies also suggest that alternative agriculture — such as on-farm processing, alternative marketing (for example, community-supported agriculture) and organics — may provide a more welcoming space for women compared to the dominant industrial model.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman bends to arrange boxes in a kiosk at a farmer's market." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/352064/original/file-20200810-16-um4mrm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A woman arranges boxes in a kiosk at a farmer’s market in Montréal.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An organic farmer in our study said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Organic farming, too, is different. The only time I’ve felt uncomfortable as a woman in a room was when I’ve been in a conventional [i.e., non-organic] farming meeting or conference. I think there’s definitely a difference.” </p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Recommendations for change</h2>
<p>Our report presents several recommendations to facilitate and support women’s agricultural entrepreneurship.</p>
<p>To address under-representation and lack of recognition, a clearer definition and effective documentation of women’s presence in the sector is required, including in formal business ownership agreements. </p>
<p>Child care is needed, especially child care tailored to the unconventional schedules of farming and business ownership, along with child-friendly spaces at agricultural meetings and conferences. Men can play a supportive role by engaging equally in child care and domestic work and by challenging sexism. </p>
<p>Finally, we recommend training, networking and financial supports designed specifically for women in the agriculture sector. </p>
<p>Addressing deeply ingrained gender inequality creates more equitable participation in policy-making and leadership for our land and food — and that benefits everyone.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/143666/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amber Fletcher receives research funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and Mitacs. She is a past president of the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW). This project was funded by the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (WEKH).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christie Newton receives funding from the University of Regina Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>This project was funded by the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (WEKH). Gina Grandy receives funding from WEKH to coordinate the regional hub at the Hill Levene Schools of Business. Gina is a co-researcher on a SSHRC Partnership Grant "Inclusive Innovation and Entrepreneurship Network" led by Dr. Wendy Cukier at Ryerson University. Gina has also received funding from SSHRC and CIHR in the past.
</span></em></p>New research suggests women farmers face significant challenges mostly due to stereotypes, sexism and women’s disproportionate responsibility for domestic and caregiving work.Amber J. Fletcher, Associate Professor, Sociology & Social Studies, University of ReginaChristie Newton, MSc student, Organizational Studies, University of ReginaGina Grandy, Professor (Strategy and Leadership), Dean of Hill and Levene Business Schools, University of Regina, University of ReginaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/558822016-03-10T04:41:40Z2016-03-10T04:41:40ZUprooting patriarchy: gender and urban agriculture on South Africa’s Cape Flats<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114247/original/image-20160308-15315-1m03fkr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Women make up the majority of an estimated 6000 urban farmers in Cape Town.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Green Renaissance</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Much of the talk around urban agriculture in Africa deals with poverty, hunger and accessing food. And rightly so, as 40% of Africa’s urban residents practice some agricultural <a href="http://www.ruaf.org/urban-agriculture-what-and-why">activity</a>. These activities include producing eggs, fruit or milk, but the majority farm <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjnv_vCm7HLAhWGj3IKHaBVAtsQFgg3MAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fao.org%2Fdocrep%2F016%2Fi3002e%2Fi3002e.pdf&usg=AFQjCNEOOrz6TQORfVoHO66QEp8wnsdKKQ&sig2=0xbbD_7zHnA5OeDZZLnAqA&bvm=bv.116274245,d.bGs">vegetables</a>.</p>
<p>In countries like Cameroon, Malawi and Ghana at least one in four urban households grows <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiZtuGp3a7LAhXEE5oKHQdABwMQFggbMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fao.org%2Fdocrep%2F016%2Fi3002e%2Fi3002e.pdf&usg=AFQjCNEOOrz6TQORfVoHO66QEp8wnsdKKQ&sig2=R6z4ywgShCR6ICO4Qgakew">vegetables</a>. Doing so helps to buffer these households against seasonal shortages or food price hikes. But for real, long-term sustainability, households need to have strong community networks and relationship bonds, also known as social capital.</p>
<p><a href="http://staskulesh.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/prosperouscommunity.pdf">Social capital</a> is the networks and relationships among people in a society, enabling it to function effectively. Urban farmers build social capital by sharing produce with those around them, and then draw on these relationships when they need labour, food items or <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Courtney_Gallaher/publication/257511452_Urban_agriculture_social_capital_and_food_security_in_the_Kibera_slums_of_Nairobi_Kenya/links/54ad5e6e0cf24aca1c6f26ee.pdf">favours</a>. So it is the social benefits of urban agriculture that really help the poor bounce back from economic shocks like drought, retrenchment or illness. </p>
<p>These social benefits are particularly relevant to the women who make up the majority of Africa’s urban <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjnv_vCm7HLAhWGj3IKHaBVAtsQFgg3MAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fao.org%2Fdocrep%2F016%2Fi3002e%2Fi3002e.pdf&usg=AFQjCNEOOrz6TQORfVoHO66QEp8wnsdKKQ&sig2=0xbbD_7zHnA5OeDZZLnAqA&bvm=bv.116274245,d.bGs">farmers</a>. The historically economic focus on urban agriculture is too narrow. An exaggerated focus on maximising economic efficiency may disempower <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/525171?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">women</a>. So, social capital formation is a particularly important benefit for low-income female urban cultivators. It requires greater attention when including urban agriculture in community development initiatives.</p>
<p>South Africa’s coastal city, Cape Town, provides a prime example of a municipality that recognises the benefits and challenges unique to female urban farmers. The city has drawn up an urban agriculture <a href="http://www.capetown.gov.za/en/Policies/All%20Policies/Urban%20Agricultural%20Policy%20for%20the%20City%20of%20Cape%20Town%20-%20approved%20on%2007%20December%202006.pdf">policy</a> that specifically supports female farmers through allowing the municipality to donate infrastructure, inputs and equipment to urban farmers, most of whom operate on the Cape Flats.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwidt8L18rDLAhWI0RQKHdu9D2cQFggkMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Frepository.uwc.ac.za%2Fxmlui%2Fbitstream%2Fhandle%2F10566%2F296%2FPuoaneUrbanPoverty2005.pdf%3Fsequence%3D4&usg=AFQjCNFFrjQs7Nf6fHlrhMHYA8l7H8TfFw&sig2=kCGBy0REbUbiw_s2ECZPRA&bvm=bv.116274245,d.bGs">Cape Flats</a> is an area that experiences higher unemployment and lower access to basic services than its neighbouring northern and southern suburbs. Pervasive social ills like domestic violence are a part of life for many of the women living <a href="http://mg.co.za/article/2015-12-03-daily-brutality-numbs-the-misery-of-cape-flats-living">there</a>.</p>
<p>Women make up the majority of the estimated 6000 urban <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiHmIa04a7LAhVDJ5oKHdiLBOgQFggsMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fscholar.sun.ac.za%2Fbitstream%2Fhandle%2F10019.1%2F96907%2Folivier_physical_2015.pdf%3Fsequence%3D1&usg=AFQjCNFLgpuPyM7E-_ePBX2JxT4_poMbsw&sig2=MQPMZbXFnXF4knllJLWepQ">farmers</a> operating on the Cape Flats. Most of these women farm on a very small scale in their own backyards, and some are part of formal groups that make a living by selling surplus. The prevalence of women in Cape Town’s urban agriculture sector is important for family food security and for strengthening social capital.</p>
<h2>Food security</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10130950.2008.9674996#aHR0cDovL3d3dy50YW5kZm9ubGluZS5jb20vZG9pL3BkZi8xMC4xMDgwLzEwMTMwOTUwLjIwMDguOTY3NDk5NkBAQDA=">Research</a> about urban agriculture in Cape Town has found that female farmers use more of their produce to feed their families than male farmers do. Additionally, female farming groups contribute more towards local food security by giving away rather than selling a notable portion of their surplus. </p>
<p>For example, female-only cultivation groups give away about 25% of their produce to crèches, clinics and school feeding schemes, and take about 40% home to their families. By contrast, members of one of the few male groups take home only 20% of the food they grow. They prefer to sell the bulk of their <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10130950.2008.9674996#aHR0cDovL3d3dy50YW5kZm9ubGluZS5jb20vZG9pL3BkZi8xMC4xMDgwLzEwMTMwOTUwLjIwMDguOTY3NDk5NkBAQDA=">produce</a>. This means that the food grown by women is more accessible to those without the money to buy it.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114248/original/image-20160308-15338-6nq27d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Networks of female farmers empower them to fight patriarchy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Green Renaissance</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Social capital</h2>
<p>Sharing food in this way is a powerful contributor to <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257511452_Urban_agriculture_social_capital_and_food_security_in_the_Kibera_slums_of_Nairobi_Kenya">the formation</a> of social capital. It plays a vital role in community development. For urban farmers, social capital reduces vulnerability by increasing their networks of support as well as by expanding their opportunities - like additional training, land access or inputs from NGOs. These farmers gain friends and build important links with organisations in their <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Courtney_Gallaher/publication/257511452_Urban_agriculture_social_capital_and_food_security_in_the_Kibera_slums_of_Nairobi_Kenya/links/54ad5e6e0cf24aca1c6f26ee.pdf">areas</a> through such networks. </p>
<p>When female urban farmers group together, they gain power to challenge pervasive patriarchal norms. These include gender-based violence and unequal access to resources. In Cape Town, one such group helped a member to pursue legal action against her sexually abusive <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03768350120097478#aHR0cDovL3d3dy50YW5kZm9ubGluZS5jb20vZG9pL3BkZi8xMC4xMDgwLzAzNzY4MzUwMTIwMDk3NDc4QEBAMA==">husband</a>.</p>
<p>Even in a gender-mixed agriculture group, where men tried to bully the women into obeisance, the women rallied to drive the men from the <a href="http://abalimi.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/NL37.pdf">group</a>. These examples indicate both the generalised patriarchal oppression that men accept as the norm and the capability urban agriculture instils in women to oppose it through strengthened social capital.</p>
<p>Urban agriculture provides a means to improve women’s access to their rights and their ability to raise a healthy family. This is only possible in contexts where institutional backing specifically targets women. In Cape Town, the support female urban farmers receive from NGOs and local government includes land access, inputs, training and extension services. This makes it possible for even the most economically marginalised women to use urban agriculture for building sustainable livelihoods.</p>
<p>The City of Cape Town and local NGOs have made much progress towards increasing support for female urban farmers. Since government first took note of urban agriculture on the Cape Flats in 1984, an urban agriculture policy has been written. As a result, thousands of women have been trained and supported to get involved in urban agriculture. A number of NGOs have also been established on the Cape Flats to support sustainable urban agriculture. </p>
<p>These NGOs employ primarily local women, notably in key leadership roles like extension officers, project managers, agriculture group leaders and programme <a href="https://www.google.co.za/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj70KjxmrHLAhXnJ5oKHZl0CjkQFggmMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fscholar.sun.ac.za%2Fbitstream%2Fhandle%2F10019.1%2F96907%2Folivier_physical_2015.pdf%3Fsequence%3D1&usg=AFQjCNFLgpuPyM7E-_ePBX2JxT4_poMbsw&sig2=kTowQf94MonVtNFQW17xLQ">directors</a>. </p>
<p>The future of urban agriculture in Cape Town, and its continued success in empowering women, depends on overcoming key challenges. These include the volatility of donor-dependent NGO budgets and land access limitations caused by red tape. These can be achieved by facilitating land access, particularly for those with limited education and literacy, as well as by stabilising the budgets of NGOs supporting urban agriculture in Cape Town. </p>
<p>There exists real potential to create resilient livelihoods among some of Cape Town’s most economically marginalised households, if urban agriculture could just be scaled up.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55882/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Olivier is a researcher part of the Africa Climate Change Adaptation Initiative (ACCAI) programme entitled “Co-producing knowledge on food systems for development in Africa” which is funded by the Open Society Foundation, via the Global Change and Sustainability Research Institute. Empirical findings are based on research funded by the National Research Foundation.</span></em></p>In Cape Town’s Cape Flats, female urban farmers are vital for food security and strengthening social capital.David W. Olivier, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Global Change and Sustainability Research Institute, University of the WitwatersrandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.