The economic and social conditions of Pakistani Basmati Rice Farmers
In most developing countries the lack of resources, high costs, and limited diversified income sources are among the major factors that affect small-scale farming households' ability to earn an income, reproduce and be food secure. By using a strategy of income diversification and the use of cash...
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| Formato: | H2 |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés sueco |
| Publicado: |
SLU/Dept. of Rural Development and Agroecology
2020
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| Sumario: | In most developing countries the lack of resources, high costs, and limited
diversified income sources are among the major factors that affect small-scale
farming households' ability to earn an income, reproduce and be food secure. By
using a strategy of income diversification and the use of cash crops in agricultural
production can be a resourceful way for a sustainable livelihood and a reduced risk
of income variability for small-scale farmers.
This study aims to investigate the status of small-scale farming households'
economic conditions for earning an income from agricultural production to obtain
food security. Including the determinants of basmati rice production for farmers
located in the region of Punjab in rural Pakistan. The study is based on a household
survey of 152 households conducted by the international help-organization Oxfam
in Punjab, Pakistan.
The result showed that agricultural production is the main source of income for
farmers. The farmers are growing various crops, raising different kinds of livestock,
taking seasonal work, providing other farm-related activities, that result in a higher
ability to become food secure. The main activity for the male farmers was
agricultural and for the female unpaid domestic work. The women spend 4 hours
(per day) more on unpaid work than the male farmers spend on agricultural work.
3 percent of the farmers within this study base all their income on basmati rice
production. This concludes a low income and with a low purchasing power, a large
household size with several individuals dependent in the household. The farmers
that only produce basmati rice are less likely to become food secure than the farmers
that diversify agricultural production.
When it comes to reaching food security for the small-scale farmers of Punjab,
Pakistan, the result specifies that for the farmers that based 50 percent or less on
basmati-rice production were more likely to be food secure than the farmers that
based all of their income from this source. The diversification of farmers' income
from agricultural production, several cattle, and the aspect of female household
members undertaking paid work made the farmers more secure in case of
fluctuation in the market and in case of spoiled harvest. |
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