"When women are empowered and can claim their rights and access to land, leadership, opportunities and choices, economies grow, food security is enhanced and prospects are improved for current and future generations", Michelle Bachelet - Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women.
M S Swaminathan, the famous agricultural scientist describes that it was woman who first domesticated crop plants and thereby initiated the art and science of farming. While men went out hunting in search of food, women started gathering seeds from the native flora and began cultivating those of interest from the point of view of 5F’s (food, feed, fodder, fibre and fuel). Women have played and continue to play a key role in the conservation of basic life support systems such as land, water, flora and fauna. Agriculture is central economic activity and so it is essential for women to learn the best ways to grow and cultivate their own nutritious food, so that they can feed their children and sell in markets their produce
Women are the backbone of the development of rural and national economies. They comprise 43% of the world’s agricultural labour force, which rises to 70% in some countries. Investing in women farmer promises to yield a double dividend, better food security and greater economic growth. Most rural poor are women farmer and their opportunities to benefit from agriculture are limited. More than three decades of work on women and agriculture at the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) suggests that improving women's access to resources, technology, markets and property rights will increase farm productivity, raise income and improve household nutrition.
Agriculture is the main alternative for Rural Women, and realizing the importance of rural women in agriculture is an important aspect of gender relations. In many countries, the role of women in agriculture is considered just to be a "help" and not an important economic contribution to agricultural production. Women who are primarily engaged in agriculture are those who have least access to training and information, least control over assets and limited access to credit and inputs and as a result their household agricultural production tends to be low. One of the major weaknesses of the agricultural sector is to be found in the production, disposal, and preservation, processing and marketing of agricultural products.
Farmers, on the other hand, also seem to prefer women as agricultural workers. When farmers face with the increasing costs of production required for modern agriculture, he then opts to squeeze his labour costs by using lower-paid women workers. Similarly, the work of women within family-based agriculture is preferred because it is cheaper than hiring labour. Women agricultural workers, although they represent a big proportion of all women workers, continue to receive lower wages than men. The Ministry of labour puts the difference at 60 per cent of men’s wages, while the Indian Labour journal showed that women received 75 per cent of men earnings. The nature and sphere of women’s productivity in the labor market is largely determined by socio-cultural and economic factors. Women do not enter the labour market on equal terms when compared to men. Their occupational choices are also limited due to social and cultural constraints, gender bias in the labour market, and lack of supportive facilities such as child care, transport, and accommodation in the formal sector of the labour market.
Women in India in agriculture sector faces variety of challenges. First of all they are not able to owe the market of their produce and frequently they are unable to capture gains of trade from their own production and in many places women also face legal or traditional barriers to owning assets like Land, farm animals or latest farm equipment. Although women farmers are very experienced and highly skilled but however facing these constraints make it difficult for them to improve their livelihood and standard of living. The training of rural women is very important, especially with the adoption of modern agricultural techniques that are tailored to suit their local conditions. Knowledge should be imparted to them regarding the use natural resources in a sustainable manner, with a view to achieve economic development without degrading the environment.
There should be a conscious effort to improve women’s access to credit and also to key inputs like fertilizer and improved seeds. New technology should be developed keeping women in mind. There should be focus on trying to use labour saving devices for women and also encourage them to use improved types of crops. Innovation can speed up production and boost earnings. Also it would be beneficial to help women gain access to information as prices, market information, information about weather, and technical information that are relevant to their crops. Increasing women’s control on their economic activities and increasing their incomes and ownership on their assets has a very positive effect not only on their own wellbeing but also on their overall economic status of the household. Improving access to resources not only spurs agricultural growth but also transforms women life.
It is extremely important to recognize the role that rural women play and the contribution that they make in networks and cooperatives, giving them greater political and financial support and involving them in the training and conducting of development programs that enhance women's role in agricultural production. Networks operating in rural areas, especially rural women's organisations are partners to be involved in the conception of development programs. To put it another way, even though global partnerships will always be necessary and useful, organisations should work towards the empowerment of rural women and enhance their linkage to nutrition sensitive agriculture since actions are always local.
