The contribution of women in agriculture and its evaluation

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It is easy to imagine the role of women in agriculture in ancient times where farming with hand-sown seeds was introduced by women, people moved from animal husbandry civilization to agricultural civilization. Agriculture is one of the most important jobs for the women of rural Bengal. From seed storage and sowing, to planting seedlings, irrigation, harvesting and even marketing, women play a unique role.

According to the ILO Labor Force Survey 2013, out of the total 12 million women workers in Bangladesh, 64% or about 92 lakh women are involved in agriculture, fisheries and social forestry. Reviewing the data of BBS, it can be seen that the participation of women in the overall agricultural management (agriculture-forest-fisheries sector) has increased significantly. However, the problem is that the labor of this huge population in the agricultural sector is not properly evaluated institutionally. Women who work on other people's land as day laborers are constantly subjected to wage inequality, as well as long-term employment and other psychological harassment. According to section 345 of the Bangladesh Labor Act 2006, men and women are required to pay equal wages for homosexuality, but in the case of planting and processing seedlings, where the daily wage of men is 300-600 rupees, women get only 350 rupees. So, apparently behind the increase in women's participation in agriculture seems to be the empowerment of women, but behind it is the advantage of long-term work with low wages.

In this way, the issue of employing those who work on their own land in agriculture is considered as a part of the daily work of women even in today's civilized society, the issue of paying wages is ridiculous. In the Bangladesh National Women's Development Policy 2011, the ninth of the 22 goals set for the overall development of women is to give due recognition to the contribution of women in the social and economic spheres, but nevertheless there is no valid identity of women workers in agriculture in Bangladesh. Although the word Kisan-Kisani is used in the textbook poems, the word 'Kisani' is not used formally. Can it be assumed, however, that the status of women's work has diminished or that only writers can evaluate their work, highlighting their socio-economic oppression through writing? Those who have a responsibility to move society forward, do they have nothing to do to ensure a proper evaluation of women's work?

According to the CSRL report of 2017, rural women participate in 18 out of 21 types of work in the agricultural sector. However, in the report of Agricultural Information Service titled 'Women in Agriculture', the participation of women in the ownership of agricultural land is only 19 percent. The CPD's research report also found that women work three times more than men. On the other hand, most of the women who are involved in unpaid agriculture and family labor are not interested in working on other people's land for wages. The main reasons behind this are family disagreement, underestimation of work and wage inequality. Although many family elders do not address the issue of family disagreement, they explain that women have to take care of their children and work outside the home. In that case it becomes difficult for a woman to work on other people's land from outside the house all day long. As a result, women do not get the status of domestic work and do not get the status of paid labor in the agricultural sector. Women's labor is not considered as a source of household income in the rural agrarian economy, but as a source of reduction in the overall cost of crop production.

Therefore, for the overall socio-economic development of agriculture and the country, the evaluation of women's work should not only consider them as women, but also their overall skills. It is considered not only in agriculture but in all sectors, and of course in all countries. At the same time, we should consider how much of the fundamental rights that women in America fought for on March 7, 1857, have been realized in 2016!