Women's Off‐Farm Employment and Dietary Quality in Rural Africa

Most households in rural Africa are involved in smallholder farming, but off‐farm employment is an important additional income source for many. Previous research has analysed links between off‐farm employment and well‐being, but mostly at the household level, not considering that household members may be affected differently. In particular, gender gaps in employment, nutrition and other well‐being dimensions are widely observed. Here, we use survey data collected in Tanzania and Zambia to examine how women's off‐farm employment influences their individual‐level dietary quality. Regression estimates with instrumental variables show that women's off‐farm employment is associated with improved dietary diversity, including more frequent consumption of nutritious foods such as meat, fish, fruits and vegetables. We also explore potential mechanisms, including changes in household income, women's decision‐making and time allocation. The main results hold across various robustness checks, suggesting that improving women's access to off‐farm employment can help increase household income and reduce widespread gender gaps in rural Africa.