Women in Agriculture
A Brief History
In response to the high incidence of pesticide misuse and dangerous pesticide practices that have direct, adverse effects on women in agriculture and on plantations in Asia, PAN AP embarked on a three-year Women and Pesticides - Training and Education Programme for Change between 1991 and 1993.
The project facilitated the following activities:
PAN AP's training workshops, research studies, and experiential feedback from partner groups tackling women's exposure to pesticides and unsustainable agricultural practices confirmed that women - 60 percent of the agricultural workforce - are marginalized and disadvantaged.
Case study research revealed a dearth of information on the impact of pesticides on women, and the subjects' status as a 'non-issue' in many countries. This lack of information, the resulting invisibility, and inertia over the issue extended even to women's' role in agriculture and contribution to the national economy.
In order to promulgate a more holistic and sustainable agriculture, it is crucial that women's invaluable labour, skills and knowledge are recognized and valued. We also need to learn from, and build on, women's knowledge in traditional 'alternative' farming with the tools and technology that sustainable agriculture farmers have utilized. This learning, innovating and building is an integral aspect in promoting gender sensitive, appropriate and sustainable forms of agriculture.
The Women in Agriculture Programme
In April 1994, PAN AP organized the Task Force Meeting on Women in Agriculture to examine the emerging trends in agriculture and the impact on women; facilitate analysis on agricultural systems and it critically look at women's role in agriculture. The meeting affirmed PAN AP's inclination to go beyond the specifics of women's exposure to pesticides. It was clear that pesticides were one of a myriad of concerns impacting rural peasant women in the agricultural and plantation sectors.
The problems of women's exposure to pesticides needed to be placed within the larger context of their status as women, and required analysis of the socio-economic and political structures, and processes that inherently oppress women.
The main objectives for the future are primarily to Make Women Visible and The Empowerment of Women, with a focus on Women's Rights and the articulation of these at all spheres.
Components of these objectives would be:
Making Women Visible:
1. The need to build on participatory actions and research in:
where PAN AP will provide on the ground information that is pro-actively sought out and cutting edge in nature. The information would go towards advocacy level activities and the empowerment of local communities: hence Making Women Visible at local, national and international levels. Besides books, PAN AP will be using audio visuals and videos to gather and share the above information.
2. Advocacy is to be on-going.
Empowerment of Women:
1. On the issue of the empowerment of women, PAN AP has a role to play and will need to stress:
2. Studies and research are to be undertaken, particularly in terms of pesticides exposure, impacts of biotech. and IPRs. The information gathered is to be used in Advocacy, and will be part of a life long process of education, training, and empowerment of women. The emphasis will be on "Life Long Education" leading to empowerment.
PAN AP 's Vision for the 21st Century is to build a solid network working on the issues of concern and importance to women within agriculture and the Sustainable Agriculture movement. This will again involve networking, communication, training workshops, participatory actions, information gathering and research, as well as advocacy at local, national and international.
It is hoped that the combination of these activities and the emphasis placed on women's concerns within agriculture will empower, motivate and strengthen women's capacities to take on the challenges they face: be it the age old trends of patriarchy and sexism; pesticides and emerging threats of biotechnology; the new trade agreements and so forth.
Copyright © 1999 PAN Asia & the Pacific