Rural Women’s Participation and their Decision Making Behavior in Livestock Management and Household Activities in Central Dry Zone Area of Myanmar

The study aimed to assess the factors affecting on women’s participation level and decision-making behavior of rural women in livestock management and household activities in particularly 60 randomized respondents from three villages of Natmauk township, central dry zone area, Myanmar. Descriptive analysis, Chi-Square test and stepwise regression methods were applied to analyze the relationship of women’s participation and decision-making behavior of respondents. Results of the KII and FGD were used to further explains in survey. Respondents are middle-aged group, small-sized farmers, busy with domestic chores and had no formal schooling. They mostly grow sesame, groundnut and other tropical crops and rear small sizes of adult cattle males in the study. Men are chief decision makers in their households because they have access to more resources. Ownership of land and access to information is highly affected on decision making of when to buy/sell livestock, what to feed and when medical treatment of livestock. Information got especially from friends, family and traders are helpful in the decision making of buying/selling livestock, spending money earned from livestock and feeding the food for the livestock. Spearman’s rho correlation was used to identify and streamline women’s activities that need to be focused on so that to make good decisions in livestock farming.