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Gender pay gaps among agricultural and non-agricultural wage workers: a cross-country examination

Background paper for The status of women in agrifood systems










Benali, M., Slavchevska, V., Piedrahita, N., Davis, B., Sitko, N., Nico, G. & Azzarri, C. 2024. Gender pay gaps among agricultural and non-agricultural wage workers: a cross-country examination –Background paper for The status of women in agrifood systems. Rome, FAO.



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    Women in sub-Saharan Africa constitute almost half of the agricultural workforce, yet they are limited in their ability to access productive resources, such as land, water, improved seeds and fertilizers, and are subjected to discriminatory practices that hinder their productivity. While previous research has consistently identified a significant gender gap in land productivity, the literature lacks a comprehensive understanding of the gender gap in agricultural labour productivity. This paper's findings reveal varying gender gaps across the sampled countries, ranging from 47 percent in Nigeria and the United Republic of Tanzania to 2 percent in Ethiopia, which is the only country with no significant gender gap in labour productivity. On average, the gender gap amounts to 35 percent, with the largest portion (27 percent) attributed to the endowment effect. This background paper was prepared to inform Chapter 2 of FAO’s report on The status of women in agrifood systems.
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    The State of Food and Agriculture 2010–11 brought to global attention the problem of female farmers lagging in terms of agricultural productivity compared with male farmers. This study returns to the question of gender-based differences in farm productivity, decomposing differences in farm yields between males and females. We identify one part of the gap explained by differences in attributes and access to productive assets, and another part explained by differences in returns to assets and attributes (i.e. “unexplained” differences). This paper applies the Kitagawa-Oaxaca–Blinder decomposition to gender-based productivity gaps using nationally representative household surveys from 11 developing countries in Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. We estimate productivity models for each country utilizing a comparable set of explanatory assets and attributes. We also implement a comparable decomposition of observed productivity gaps. The cross-country analysis shows that observed total gaps in productivity by gender do not always favour male farmers; the decomposition of these gaps, however, reveals that female farmers face gender-specific constraints that manifest as lower returns to attributes and assets.This background paper was prepared to inform Chapter 2 of FAO’s report on The status of women in agrifood systems.
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    The objective of the assessment is to analyse the agriculture and rural sectors from a gender perspective at the macro level (policy), meso level (institutional) and micro level (community and household). The Assessment seeks to identify gender inequalities in access to critical productive resources, assets, services and opportunities. The assessment looks at the priorities, needs and constraints of both women and men in agricultural and rural communities, and the gaps that exist in responding to these issues. It also provides recommendations and guidance to promote gender sensitivity in future programmes and projects, and identifies possible partners for gender-related activities. This Assessment is also intended to raise awareness about gender issues among policy-makers, FAO officers, NGOs and community-based organizations (CBOs) in Tonga. It provides background and gender-related information and can be used as a tool to mainstream gender perspectives in future policies, projects and programmes in ways that empower rural women.

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