Description

Women are the backbone of the rural economy, especially in the developing world. Empowering and investing in rural women has been shown to significantly increase productivity, reduce hunger and malnutrition and improve rural livelihoods. The contribution of women to agriculture, as well as their needs, was poorly documented. The study was designed to investigate the multiple roles and activities of women in the rural agricultural economy, and their impact on household food security and rural livelihoods. The study determined the extent of support and/or participation of rural women in agricultural development identified and analysed the barriers women faced in their struggle for sustainable livelihood and generated policy-guidelines and recommendations that could help improve the conditions of women. The study concluded that women assume major responsibilities for many agricultural activities. Women are the backbone of food production and provision for family consumption. The study also found that women spend more time per day farming on their farms. In spite of all these, women have limited access to critical resources, inputs and support services.