Agricultural modernisation and development, involving the integration of rural producers into modern value chains, can facilitate poverty alleviation, improved food security, and better conditions for rural households. But... [ view full abstract ]
Agricultural modernisation and development, involving the integration of rural producers into modern value chains, can facilitate poverty alleviation, improved food security, and better conditions for rural households. But though females contribute a high proportion of agricultural labour evidence from many developing countries show that benefits are not equitably distributed. Women from poorer households are particularly likely to experience inequitable distributional outcomes. Socio-cultural norms and practices, and legal and institutional structures restrict female mobility, land ownership, access to education,credit and other markets. Constraints on female participation indecision-making and market access also lower farm productivity and output.
These issues are particularly acute in Pakistan that has very poor levels of gender equity. In this paper, we review the conditions of rural women in Pakistan, discuss the international experiences of gender outcomes in modern agricultural value chains in developing countries, and draw implications for gender outcomes with agricultural modernisation in Pakistan. We discuss the case of a programme implemented by the dairy multinational Nestle that links small dairy producers to a modern value chain, based on the concept of‘Creating Shared Value’ (CSV) incorporating corporate social responsibility and financial viability with developmental goals. The project has a special focus on rural women who have traditionally played an important role in livestock management. This project has successfully raised farm incomes and has produced significant social and economic changes including gender outcomes,demonstrating that innovative approaches can at least partially overcome barriers to integrating females in modern value chains, without directly confronting deep rooted cultural norms and practices. Our paper analyses reasons for its relative success, critically explores some of the distributional outcomes, identifies weaknesses and deficiencies, and discusses lessons of wider applicability.
5d. Value chains & trade
