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Economic Benefits of Empowering Women in Agriculture: Assumptions and Evidence

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  • C. Leigh Anderson
  • Travis W. Reynolds
  • Pierre Biscaye
  • Vedavati Patwardhan
  • Carly Schmidt

Abstract

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses generally focus on intervention impacts or outcomes. Less common, however, are reviews of the assumptions and theory underlying the pathways between intervention and outcome. We consider the hypothetical case for interventions to empower female farmers, either by prioritising women for new investments or re-allocating existing resources. Empowerment is defined as increased women’s decision-making authority related to agricultural resources, management and production, and income. We hypothesise two avenues through which productivity or health benefits might arise: (i) eliminating female-male differences in, e.g. input access; or (ii) leveraging gendered risk, time, and social preferences leading women to differentially allocate resources. A review of evidence highlights the extent of support for the baseline, behaviour change, and economic benefit assumptions behind these hypothesised avenues. Findings suggest returns to investing in female farmers could be significant in various contexts but estimates of economic returns to empowering women in agriculture remain limited.

Suggested Citation

  • C. Leigh Anderson & Travis W. Reynolds & Pierre Biscaye & Vedavati Patwardhan & Carly Schmidt, 2021. "Economic Benefits of Empowering Women in Agriculture: Assumptions and Evidence," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(2), pages 193-208, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jdevst:v:57:y:2021:i:2:p:193-208
    DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2020.1769071
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    Cited by:

    1. Rathnachandra, S.D. Dilini & Malkanthi, S.H. Pushpa, 2021. "Determinants of Women’s Empowerment and Household Poverty Reduction in Imbulpe DS Division, Sri Lanka," Problems of World Agriculture / Problemy Rolnictwa Światowego, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, vol. 21(4), December.
    2. DeJaeghere, Joan & Pellowski Wiger, Nancy & Le, Hue & Luong, Phuong & Ngo, Nga Thi Hang & Vu, Thanh Thi & Lee, Jongwook, 2022. "Why do aspirations matter for empowerment?: Discrepancies between the A-WEAI domains and aspirations of ethnic minority women in Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    3. Sara Ratna Qanti & Alexandra Peralta & Di Zeng, 2022. "Social norms and perceptions drive women’s participation in agricultural decisions in West Java, Indonesia," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(2), pages 645-662, June.
    4. Khyati Dharamshi & Liora Moskovitz & Sugandha Munshi, 2023. "Securing a Sustainable Future: A Path towards Gender Equality in the Indian Agricultural Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-30, August.
    5. Lumet, Kenedy & Gitau, Raphael & Owuor, George, 2022. "The influence of women’s empowerment on poverty reduction: A case of smallholder sugarcane farmers in western Kenya," African Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, African Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 17(3), September.
    6. Songsermsawas, Tisorn & Kafle, Kashi & Winters, Paul, 2023. "Decomposing the impacts of an agricultural value chain development project by ethnicity and gender in Nepal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    7. Duah Dwomoh & Kofi Agyabeng & Henry Oppong Tuffour & Afua Tetteh & Anthony Godi & Richmond Aryeetey, 2023. "Modeling inequality in access to agricultural productive resources and socioeconomic determinants of household food security in Ghana: a cross-sectional study," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 11(1), pages 1-21, December.
    8. Sajitha Dishanka & Takeshi Sakurai & Yukio Ikemoto, 2022. "Equity and Efficiency in Women-Empowered Contract Farming: An Explanatory Case Study on the Tea Estate Sector of Sri Lanka," Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies, AMH International, vol. 13(6), pages 40-54.
    9. Franczak, Jennifer & Lanivich, Stephen E. & Adomako, Samuel, 2023. "Filling institutional voids: Combinative effects of institutional shortcomings and gender on the alertness – Opportunity recognition relationship," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PB).
    10. Elizabeth Bryan & Elisabeth Garner, 2022. "Understanding the pathways to women’s empowerment in Northern Ghana and the relationship with small-scale irrigation," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(3), pages 905-920, September.
    11. Ida Arff Tarjem & Ola Tveitereid Westengen & Poul Wisborg & Katharina Glaab, 2023. "“Whose demand?” The co-construction of markets, demand and gender in development-oriented crop breeding," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(1), pages 83-100, March.
    12. Alexandra Peralta, 2022. "The role of men and women in agriculture and agricultural decisions in Vanuatu," Asia and the Pacific Policy Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 59-80, January.
    13. Nomfundo Shelembe & Simphiwe Innocentia Hlatshwayo & Albert Modi & Tafadzwanashe Mabhaudhi & Mjabuliseni Simon Cloapas Ngidi, 2024. "The Association of Socio-Economic Factors and Indigenous Crops on the Food Security Status of Farming Households in KwaZulu-Natal Province," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-18, March.
    14. Dorothee Weiffen & Ghassan Baliki & Tilman Brück, 2022. "Violent conflict moderates food security impacts of agricultural asset transfers in Syria: A heterogeneity analysis using machine learning," HiCN Working Papers 381, Households in Conflict Network.

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