Cynthia Bantilan

Gender-related impacts of improved agricultural technologies identification of indicators from a case study

This study examines the gender-related consequences of adoption of a groundnut production technology (GPT) package introduced in Umra village for increasing the production of legumes in India. GPT affected household labor activity patterns, decision making, and distribution of benefits. The package offered improved varieties and improved practices. Data were obtained from surveys conducted among 26 farm households in each Umra and Karanji village during 1992-94 and among 15 agricultural wage laborer households from Umra and 21 from Karanji. Men and women both cooperated in certain groundnut production activities and specialized in other activities. Men used agricultural equipment and tools and performed hard labor. Women used hand skills or small tools. Villages differed in gender task specificity. Umra women after GPT reported more work in field cleaning, fertilizer application, and sowing by hand dibbling. A new GPT activity of gypsum application was handled in almost 60% of farm households by women. Large yield gains changed harvesting activities in Umra. The number of exclusive activities performed only by women rose after GPT. GPT was not designed to eliminate drudgery performed by women. Umra women spent more time than Karanji women in production. More labor was needed with GPT. Wage rates for women workers were similar in both villages. Wages were less in Umra for men compared to Karanji. Men and women jointly decided on resource allocations in 53% of households in Karanji and only 36% in Umra. The adoption of GPT reduced the control of women over resource use. More joint and sole decisions by women were made in Umra on the use of the main product. Women gained control over products for home use in Umra. Men retained control over the value of 80% of the crop. Both men and women were satisfied with GPT, but specific perceptions differed by gender.

Exploring the relationship between local institutions in SAT India and adaptation to climate variability

This paper examines the relationship between local institutions and adaptation to climate variability in four semi-arid villages in India. Based on a qualitative survey, it draws attention to the constraints that farming households face, the role of institutions, and the implications for their capacities to adapt. Using an institutional framework, the study examines the role of local institutions in facilitating community adaptation to perceived climate variability. It was found that at the institutional and community level farmers rely on government schemes that provide social safety nets and the private sector such as moneylenders as sources of adaptation options regarding access to credit. Serious constraints emerged, however, in terms of adaptation to what may be a more challenging future. These constraints were further explored by means of grounded theory. The lack of collective feeling and action has hindered bargaining for better market prices and the development of alternate livelihood options. The need for better financial inclusion and access to more formal systems of finance is necessary to increase the overall adaptive capacity of households. During crisis situations or climatic shocks, the absence of these systems means the sale of household assets and resources especially among small and landless groups of farmers. Overall, rural households perceive that public, civic, and private institutions play a significant role in shielding them against the adverse effects of climate variability. The perceived importance of different institutions is, however, different across different categories of farmers, women, and labourers.

Ex-ante Impact Assessment of ‘Stay-Green’ Drought Tolerant Sorghum Cultivar Under Future Climate Scenarios: Integrated Modeling Approach

An integrated modeling framework – IMPACT – which integrates partial equilibrium economic model, hydrology model, crop simulation model and climate model was used to examine the ex-ante economic impact of developing and disseminating a drought tolerant sorghum cultivar in target countries of Africa and Asia. The impact of drought tolerant sorghum technology on production, consumption, trade flow and prices of sorghum in target and non-target countries were analyzed. And also we estimated the returns to research investment for developing the promising new drought tolerant cultivars and dissemination in the target countries. The analysis indicates that the economic benefits of drought tolerant sorghum cultivar adoption in the target countries outweighs the cost of developing this new technology. The development and release of this new technology in the target countries of Asia and Africa would provide a net economic benefit of about 1,476.8 million US

MGNREGS Implementations and the Dynamics of Rural Labour Markets

for the entire world under no climate change condition. Under climate change scenarios the net benefits derived from adoption of new drought tolerant sorghum cultivar is higher than the no climate change condition. This is due to higher production realized by sorghum under climate change scenarios. The results imply that substantial economic benefits can be achieved from the development of a drought tolerant sorghum cultivar. And also this technology will perform better than the existing cultivars in future climate change condition.

Economic Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture in SAT India: An Empirical Analysis of Impacts in Andhra Pradesh Using Ricardian Approach

National economy of India has been growing rapidly in the last two decades; however, growth on employment level has not been commensurate with growth in the national economy. While faster growth of economy is beneficial to various stakeholders, employment growth is more important to reduce poverty in the economy. The experience of welfare programmes in India shows that considerable efforts have been made in terms of effectiveness in their implementations and providing wider coverage to all the needed population. This chapter evaluates differential impact of MGNREGA on the extent of fulfilment of the basic entitlements such as days of employment, wages and earnings and the extent of coverage of social groups like dalits, adivasis and women and vulnerable groups. There is a growing evidence of an increase in agricultural wages across the country over the period between 2006–07 and 2011–12, in which the impact of MGNREGA on the poor community is considerable. This review has also revealed a steep increase in female agriculture wages and a substantive decline in the male–female wage gap over the period. The search for information on the impact of MGNREGA on agricultural labour markets leads to some evidence on labour shortage, changes in wage structures, reduced distress migration, speeding up mechanization process, and peak season adjustment of work or adoption of MGNREGA calendar for its implementation.

Vulnerability to Climate Change in Semi-arid Tropics of India: Scouting for Holistic Approach

This chapter analyzes the economic impact of climate change on agriculture for the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. The objective of this study is to quantify the impact of climate change on net revenue of paddy crop and 14 other major crops in the 20 districts of the state. The Ricardian approach was used to analyze the effects of climate variables on the net income from the crop. Panel datasets on climatic, agronomic and socio-economic variables were used for this analysis. The results showed that there is significant nonlinear impact of temperature and rainfall on yield over the years on the net income from rice and other crops. On an average in rice; 1 °C rise in temperature will reduce the net income by109 INR (2.42US

Climate change: linking adaptation and mitigation through agroforestry

) per hectare in these districts and the impact of precipitation are not substantial. Among the analyzed districts, Anantapur face the maximum brunt of the impact of climate change. In case of other crops, there are varied impacts of different climatic variable on net revenue with some district gaining initially and negatively impacting later. As expected, rainfall had positive marginal impacts, however it is very negligible. The socio-economic variable i.e. amount of irrigated area, literacy rate of rural population also showed significant positive effects on the income.

Opportunities for linking adaptation and mitigation in agroforestry systems.

Characterizing vulnerable regions is a prerequisite in the priority setting for climate change research and allocating resources for the targeted stakeholders such as farmers, researchers, development practitioners and policy makers. In this context, vulnerability profiles are developed at district level for the varied agro-socio-economic environment of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The districts were indexed, based on the set of indicators representing the three components of climate change vulnerability i.e. exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity. The standard and widely accepted IPCC approach was used for the indexing purpose. Results indicated that the majority of the districts of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra are vulnerable to climate change. Over the years the analyzed districts experienced a varying level of vulnerability to climate change, with some districts improved and while others slipping into more vulnerable category. This dynamicity existed among the components of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity is reflected in the vulnerability status of the districts. This exercise is a guiding tool for formulating action plans and is way forward in improving adaptive capacity among the rural population.