IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/apecpp/v42y2020i1p113-125.html

Improving Gender Participation in Agricultural Technology Adoption in Asia: From Rhetoric to Practical Action

Author

Listed:
  • Maria Fay Rola‐Rubzen
  • Thelma Paris
  • Jacob Hawkins
  • Bibek Sapkota

Abstract

New and improved agricultural technologies can transform lives, particularly the lives of smallholder farm households in Asia who are highly dependent on agriculture. However, there are large gender disparities in the adoption of such technologies. Many barriers exist in achieving gender equity in access to and adoption of agricultural technologies, from sociocultural norms and deeply rooted beliefs about gender roles to lack of agency and lack of resources to implement policies. Notwithstanding these barriers, the case for promoting gender‐inclusive adoption of technology is strong. In this paper, we outline the rationale for improving women's adoption of agricultural technology and discuss the pitfalls of failing to include women in the technology‐adoption agenda. We then explore the policy implications and suggest various strategies that promote gender‐equitable outcomes and that can be used to mainstream gender in agricultural technology adoption efforts to convert policy statements to practical and effective actions.

Suggested Citation

  • Maria Fay Rola‐Rubzen & Thelma Paris & Jacob Hawkins & Bibek Sapkota, 2020. "Improving Gender Participation in Agricultural Technology Adoption in Asia: From Rhetoric to Practical Action," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 113-125, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:apecpp:v:42:y:2020:i:1:p:113-125
    DOI: 10.1002/aepp.13011
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/aepp.13011
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/aepp.13011?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shahra Razavi, 2012. "World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development— A Commentary," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 43(1), pages 423-437, January.
    2. Tambo, Justice A. & Mockshell, Jonathan, 2018. "Differential Impacts of Conservation Agriculture Technology Options on Household Income in Sub-Saharan Africa," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 95-105.
    3. Jeni Klugman & Lucia Hanmer & Sarah Twigg & Tazeen Hasan & Jennifer McCleary-Sills & Julieth Santamaria, 2014. "Voice and Agency : Empowering Women and Girls for Shared Prosperity," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 19036, October.
    4. Wallace E. Huffman, 2020. "Human Capital and Adoption of Innovations: Policy Implications," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 92-99, March.
    5. Anonymous, 2009. "Gender and Innovation in South Asia," Working Papers id:1890, eSocialSciences.
    6. repec:iwt:worppr:h043605 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. George W. Norton & Jeffrey Alwang, 2020. "Changes in Agricultural Extension and Implications for Farmer Adoption of New Practices," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 8-20, March.
    8. Fisher, Monica & Kandiwa, Vongai, 2014. "Can agricultural input subsidies reduce the gender gap in modern maize adoption? Evidence from Malawi," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 101-111.
    9. Peterman, Amber & Behrman, Julia & Quisumbing, Agnes, "undated". "A review of empirical evidence on gender differences in non-land agricultural inputs, technology, and services in developing countries," ESA Working Papers 289010, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Agricultural Development Economics Division (ESA).
    10. Julie A. Nelson, 2015. "Are Women Really More Risk-Averse Than Men? A Re-Analysis Of The Literature Using Expanded Methods," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 566-585, July.
    11. Rick S. Llewellyn & Brendan Brown, 2020. "Predicting Adoption of Innovations by Farmers: What is Different in Smallholder Agriculture?," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 100-112, March.
    12. Meinzen-Dick, Ruth & Quisumbing, Agnes & Doss, Cheryl & Theis, Sophie, 2019. "Women's land rights as a pathway to poverty reduction: Framework and review of available evidence," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 72-82.
    13. Cheryl R. Doss, 2018. "Women and agricultural productivity: Reframing the Issues," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 36(1), pages 35-50, January.
    14. James Heintz, 2006. "Globalization, Economic policy and Employment: Poverty and Gender Implications," Published Studies heintz_gender, Political Economy Research Institute, University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
    15. Tambo, J. & Mockshell, J., 2018. "Differential impacts of conservation agriculture technology options on household welfare in sub-Saharan Africa," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277035, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    16. World Bank, 2012. "World Development Report 2012 [Rapport sur le développement dans le monde 2012]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 4391, October.
    17. Rachel Croson & Uri Gneezy, 2009. "Gender Differences in Preferences," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 47(2), pages 448-474, June.
    18. World Bank & Food and Agriculture Organization & International Fund for Agricultural Development, 2009. "Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook [Agricultura y desarrollo rural : manual sobre género en agricultura]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 6603, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Matsuura,Masanori & Md Saiful Islam,Abu Hayat & Tauseef,Salauddin, 2023. "Mobile phone ownership, income diversification, and household welfare in rural Bangladesh," IDE Discussion Papers 875, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    2. 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.
    3. McGuire, Erin & Rietveld, Anne M. & Crump, Amanda & Leeuwis, Cees, 2022. "Anticipating gender impacts in scaling innovations for agriculture: Insights from the literature," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 25(C).
    4. Mozumdar, Lavlu & Lindgren, Samantha & Nishat, Nazia, 2025. "Modern agrotechnology, women’s empowerment and poverty reduction nexus: Mediation of farm performance; empirical evidence on BAU-STR dryer," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    5. McGuire, Erin & Leeuwis, Cees & Rietveld, Anne M. & Teeken, Béla, 2024. "Anticipating social differentiation and unintended consequences in scaling initiatives using GenderUp, a method to support responsible scaling," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 215(C).
    6. Wiredu, Alexander Nimo & Manda, Julius & Feleke, Shiferaw & Asante, Bright Owusu & Savala, Canon Engoke & Kyei-Boahen, Stephen & Manyong, Victor & Alene, Arega, 2021. "Impacts of Quality Seeds of Improved Legume Varieties on Incomes and Poverty in Mozambique: An Ordered Choice Endogenous Switching Regression Analysis," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315294, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    7. Yuxuan Xu & Hongbin Liu & Jie Lyu & Ying Xue, 2022. "What Influences Farmers’ Adoption of Soil Testing and Formulated Fertilization Technology in Black Soil Areas? An Empirical Analysis Based on Logistic-ISM Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-24, November.
    8. Catherine Ragasa & Diston Mzungu & Kenan Kalagho & Cynthia Kazembe, 2022. "Role of interactive radio programming in advancing women’s and youth’s empowerment and dietary diversity: Mixed method evidence from Malawi," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(5), pages 1259-1277, October.
    9. Gupta, Riya & Bora, Kaushik & Gangopadhyay, Prasun K. & Aggarwal, Pramod K., 2026. "Who adopts what? A systematic global review of gender dynamics in climate-smart agriculture," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 234(C).
    10. Brendan Brown & Akriti Sharma & Emma Karki & Anjana Chaudhary, 2023. "‘From Plot to People’: A Photovoice Exploration of South Asian Farmer Livelihood Diversification Strategies When Extra Time and Money are Found Through Zero Tillage Adoption," Journal of South Asian Development, , vol. 18(2), pages 193-220, August.
    11. Cheng, Jiali & Richter, Andries & Cong, Wen-Feng & Xu, Zhan & Liang, Zhengyuan & Zhang, Chaochun & Zhang, Fusuo & van der Werf, Wopke & Groot, Jeroen C.J., 2025. "Stakeholder perspectives on ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes: A case study in the North China Plain," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 223(C).
    12. Bonginkosi E. Mthembu & Thobani Cele & Xolile Mkhize, 2025. "Climate Change Impacts on Agricultural Infrastructure and Resources: Insights from Communal Land Farming Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-20, May.
    13. Keenan, Michael & Pamuk, Haki & Ng'ang'a, Stanley Karanja & Hella, Joseph Phillip, 2021. "Investment and Household Bargaining in Small-scale Farming Households A Lab-in-the-Field Experiment from Rural Tanzania," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315291, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    14. Miroslava Bavorová & Ayat Ullah & Yessika Alejandra Garcia & Daniele Cavicchioli, 2025. "Factors influencing farm succession decisions: evidence from coffee farmers of Colombia," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 27(6), pages 13215-13234, June.
    15. McGuire, Erin & Al-Zu'bi, Maha & Boa-Alvarado, Maria & Luu, Thi Thu Giang & Sylvester, Janelle M. & Leñero, Eva Marina Valencia, 2024. "Equity principles: Using social theory for more effective social transformation in agricultural research for development," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 218(C).
    16. Hom Gartaula & Tek B Sapkota & Arun Khatri-Chhetri & Gokul Prasad & Lone Badstue, 2020. "Gendered impacts of greenhouse gas mitigation options for rice cultivation in India," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 163(2), pages 1045-1063, November.
    17. Saima Mujeed & Shuangyan Li & Musarrat Jabeen & Abdelmohsen A. Nassani & Sameh E. Askar & Khalid Zaman & Muhammad Moinuddin Qazi Abro & Sriyanto & Hanifah Jambari, 2021. "Technowomen: Women’s Autonomy and Its Impact on Environmental Quality," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-22, February.
    18. Hongyu Wang & Apurbo Sarkar & Lu Qian, 2021. "Evaluations of the Roles of Organizational Support, Organizational Norms and Organizational Learning for Adopting Environmentally Friendly Technologies: A Case of Kiwifruit Farmers’ Cooperatives of Meixian, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-23, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Fisher, Monica & Kandiwa, Vongai, 2014. "Can agricultural input subsidies reduce the gender gap in modern maize adoption? Evidence from Malawi," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 101-111.
    2. Hambulo Ngoma & Henry Machina & Auckland N. Kuteya, 2021. "Can agricultural subsidies reduce gendered productivity gaps? Panel data evidence from Zambia," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 39(2), pages 303-323, March.
    3. David Pannell & David Zilberman, 2020. "Understanding Adoption of Innovations and Behavior Change to Improve Agricultural Policy," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 3-7, March.
    4. Feyertag, Joseph & Childress, Malcolm & Langdown, Ian & Locke, Anna & Nizalov, Denys, 2021. "How does gender affect the perceived security of land and property rights? Evidence from 33 countries," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    5. Pierotti, Rachael S. & Friedson-Ridenour, Sophia & Olayiwola, Olubukola, 2022. "Women farm what they can manage: How time constraints affect the quantity and quality of labor for married women’s agricultural production in southwestern Nigeria," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    6. Muhammad Faisal Shahzad & Awudu Abdulai & Gazali Issahaku, 2021. "Adaptation Implications of Climate-Smart Agriculture in Rural Pakistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-18, October.
    7. Kassie, Menale & Ndiritu, Simon Wagura & Stage, Jesper, 2014. "What Determines Gender Inequality in Household Food Security in Kenya? Application of Exogenous Switching Treatment Regression," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 153-171.
    8. 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.
    9. Azzarri, Carlo & Nico, Gianluigi, 2022. "Sex-disaggregated agricultural extension and weather variability in Africa south of the Sahara," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    10. Girma Gezimu Gebre & Hiroshi Isoda & Yuichiro Amekawa & Dil Bahadur Rahut & Hisako Nomura & Takaaki Watanabe, 2021. "What Explains Gender Gaps in Household Food Security? Evidence from Maize Farm Households in Southern Ethiopia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 155(1), pages 281-314, May.
    11. Leanne Roncolato & Alex Roomets, 2020. "Who will change the “baby?” Examining the power of gender in an experimental setting," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 823-852, September.
    12. Dileni Gunewardena & Abdoulaye Seck, 2020. "Heterogeneity in entrepreneurship in developing countries: Risk, credit, and migration and the entrepreneurial propensity of youth and women," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 713-725, August.
    13. Grosch, Kerstin & Fischer, Sabine, 2024. "Gender equivalence in overconfidence A large-scale experimental study in a non-WEIRD country," Department for Strategy and Innovation Working Paper Series 02/2024, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business.
    14. Takeshima, Hiroyuki & Hatzenbuehler, Patrick L. & Edeh, Hyacinth O., 2020. "Effects of agricultural mechanization on economies of scope in crop production in Nigeria," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    15. Andre Croppenstedt & Markus Goldstein & Nina Rosas, 2013. "Gender and Agriculture: Inefficiencies, Segregation, and Low Productivity Traps," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 28(1), pages 79-109, February.
    16. World Bank, 2016. "Georgia Country Gender Assessment," World Bank Publications - Reports 26091, The World Bank Group.
    17. Mariano J. Rabassa & Mariana Conte Grand & Christian M. García-Witulski, 2021. "Heat warnings and avoidance behavior: evidence from a bike-sharing system," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 23(1), pages 1-28, January.
    18. Emma Galli & Danilo V. Mascia & Stefania P. S. Rossi, 2020. "Bank credit constraints for women‐led SMEs: Self‐restraint or lender bias?," European Financial Management, European Financial Management Association, vol. 26(4), pages 1147-1188, September.
    19. Charles Yaw Okyere & Ama Asantewah Ahene-Codjoe, 2022. "Irrigated Agriculture and Welfare: Panel Data Evidence from Southern Ghana," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 34(2), pages 583-610, April.
    20. Dylla, Carolin & Ries, Dorothea & Schütt, Karolina, 2024. "Is there no women in investment?," IPE Working Papers 236/2024, Berlin School of Economics and Law, Institute for International Political Economy (IPE).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:apecpp:v:42:y:2020:i:1:p:113-125. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1002/(ISSN)2040-5804 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.