Tadesse, H., Melese, M., and Netsebrak, Tamene (2019), “Determinants of Rural Women’s Participation in Agriculture Activities in Gurage Zone, Ethiopia,” International Journal of Research in Agricultural Sciences, 7(2), pp. 2348–3997.
The study examined the determinants of rural women’s participation in agriculture activities in Gurage Zone, Ethiopia, as the division of labour for women varies from one society and culture to the next and cultural external circumstances affect their participation in agriculture activities. Tadesse et al. attempted to help development practitioners and policymakers prepare plans that would address women’s concerns and develop projects where the hidden potential could be fully utilised for the development of agriculture in particular and the economy in general.
A total of 389 women from the sample pool were chosen using a multi-stage sampling technique to select representative samples for the study, and descriptive statistics and ordered probit regression models were used to analyse the data. The research found that women’s participation in agricultural activities was positively and significantly influenced by farm income. It is suggested that aid and subsidised inputs should be provided for female households to increase the purchasing level of agricultural inputs in order to improve agriculture and increase their annual income.
The findings of the study showed that women have participated in varied activities and made a significant contribution to the better and vital growth and development of cereal crops. The results indicate that the proportion of women participating was relatively variable from one activity to another. Among the activities, a high proportion of women participated in harvesting, while a low proportion participated in ploughing. The main reasons reported for the low participation of women in ploughing activities were a lack of labour force and the decision of their husbands to be at home.
The other finding is that rural infrastructure, particularly road accessibility, is a critical element in sustaining sustainable rural agricultural development, which in turn creates opportunities for women to participate. Therefore, the need for more rural roads from the government will promote women’s involvement in agricultural activities. It has been discovered that education plays a significant role in enhancing and expanding rural women’s participation in agricultural activities. This finding suggests that rural women should receive education in order to encourage and increase their participation and improve their ability to earn high incomes from agricultural production. It is expected of interested parties to increase the capacity of rural women through education.
The paper suggested that in order to ensure sustainable agricultural development and effective participation of women in agricultural activities, development agents had reorganised their service delivery systems so that rural women would be treated equally with their male counterparts.