Loading...
The feminization of agriculture? economic restructuring in rural latin america
Diana Deere, Carmen
Diana Deere, Carmen
Author(s)
Contributor(s)
Keywords
Collections
Files
Loading...
OPGP1.pdf
Adobe PDF, 630.88 KB
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Online Access
Abstract
"The dominant trends in rural Latin America since the 1970s include the continued diversification of rural household livelihood strategies; a notable increase in rural women’s measured economic participation rates; a reported concentration of active rural women in nonagricultural activities; and the growing visibility of women, both rural and urban, in agricultural production. This essay considers whether the process of economic restructuring, induced by the combined effect of economic crises, neoliberal policies and globalization over the past several decades, has led to a process of feminization of agriculture. Further, is the feminization of the agricultural sector consistent with the reported concentration of active rural women in non-agricultural activities? In this essay I argue that there is clear evidence of an increase in women’s participation as agricultural wage workers. This growth has been concentrated in the non-traditional agro-export sector favoured under neoliberalism, and specifically in the production and packing of fresh vegetables, fruits and flowers for northern markets, which now constitutes Latin America’s leading agricultural export rubric. In many countries women and children make up half or more of the field labour for these crops, while women constitute the vast majority of the workers in the packing houses geared to the export market. Nonetheless, the characteristics of this employment, principally its temporary, seasonal and precarious nature, have made it difficult to capture quantitatively in national censuses and household surveys. There is also evidence, stronger for some countries than others, of a feminization of smallholder or peasant production, as growing numbers of rural women become the principal farmers, that is, own-account workers in agriculture. This phenomenon is associated with an increase in the proportion of female household heads in rural areas, as well as male absence from the farm, which is in turn related to growing male migration and/or employment in off-farm pursuits. There is little doubt that the principal factor driving these trends is the need for rural households to diversify their livelihoods. The combination of growing land shortage (itself a product of the extreme concentration of land in Latin America), economic crises and unfavourable policies for domestic agriculture under neoliberalism has meant that peasant households can no longer sustain themselves on the basis of agricultural production alone. Moreover, rural poverty rates remain grossly high. In many regions the response to the crisis of peasant agriculture has been an increase in the number of rural household members pursuing off-farm activities. Whether these are male, female or include both genders depends on a myriad of factors, with household composition and the stage of the domestic cycle, and the dynamism and gendered nature of local, regional and international labour markets, being among the most important. Latin America is a vast, heterogeneous region. This analysis focuses on the main trends in 18 Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries.1 Where possible, I draw on comparative data, supplemented by the rich case study literature. My coverage of the dominant processes in each country, however, is uneven, largely reflecting the state of the literature. Moreover, on the basis of case studies it is difficult to generalize about the dominant process in a given country, let alone the region. The case study material presented should thus be taken as examples of some of the important trends, rather than as conclusive evidence of a generalized Latin American pattern."(pg 1)
Note(s)
Topic
Type
Book
Date
2005-02
Identifier
ISBN
9290850493
DOI
Copyright/License
With permission of the license/copyright holder