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THEME: The high labour requirements of microenterprises can exclude poorer and more overworked women, even if the potential profits are attractive.
In
the context of an IFAD technical assistance grant, in 2000, the Asian
Institute of Technology (AIT) undertook a study of self-help groups
in three villages in the District of Ukhrul, in the State of Manipur,
northeast India. The area is hilly and poor. The population is primarily
of the Tangkhul tribe. The large majority of households depend on slash-and-burn
agriculture, augmented by edible plants from the forests and a few livestock.
Infrastructure and services are very inadequate. Women perform most
of the work in the family, with an active role in agriculture, livestock,
weaving and domestic work. Self-help, or informal credit and savings,
groups are of fairly recent origin (introduced under an IFAD project).
The groups operate along the lines of the Rotating Savings and Credit
Associations (ROSCA) model, with small regular deposits made by each
member and rotating borrowing occurring among group members. These women’s
groups are spreading quickly, and the study reported a very positive
initial impact.
Among other things, the AIT/IFAD study looked at the most popular income-generating activities in which women invested the informal loans when their turn came up. This focus provided an unusual depth of social information on the advantages and disadvantages of different activities from the women’s point of view. Certainly such characteristics are situation-specific, but they may well have parallels in other contexts. The three most popular activities were: poultry-raising, pig-raising and weaving. All three can be carried out in or close to the home and combined with women’s domestic responsibilities.
Poultry-raising. Poultry was the most popular loan-funded activity among the very poor. It is a traditional activity in the area, and the women there possess the required know-how. Three main advantages of poultry-raising from the women’s viewpoint were: low set-up costs, easy management and easy marketing. Poultry-raising requires little labour input: women in this area were already working 14–16 hours a day and were therefore not anxious to take on extra work. Set-up costs are also low, as poultry requires little in the way of shelter. Moreover, it quickly begins to generate a return on the investment. Female chicks begin to lay eggs within a relatively short time. These can be easily sold locally in exchange for other items needed by the family, such as staples.
But there was another reason why women liked investing in poultry: the poultry are seen as women’s property. Although men make the major financial decisions in the family, women need not consult them about poultry. Many women in the study reported that keeping poultry gave them quick access to money for emergencies. Because they did not have to ask their husbands for small amounts of cash, it also gave them a sense of independence.
Pig-raising. Keeping pigs, as with poultry, is an important element of the rural economy in the northeastern region. The profit potential is attractive. According to the villagers interviewed, a piglet cost RS 800–1 000, but could be sold in a year’s time for RS 2 500–3 000. This is a considerable income for a poor household. There is also a good market for pigs in the region. However, the labour implications for the women are a disadvantage. Feed from kitchen waste or from a garden or forest has to be collected and cooked. For these reasons, pig-raising is not as popular among very poor women, who are already overloaded with work and simply do not have time to take on extra tasks.
Weaving. Weaving is a traditional activity for women among the Tangkhul and skills are passed on from generation to generation. Women are expected to weave the cloth used by the family. Therefore, the large majority of women combine weaving with their other activities, but usually not as a market-oriented activity. With the extension of the market economy, women who are skilful weavers and have market access can generate a relatively good income. However, the downside is the high cost of materials and the time required. This restricts women from poorer households from exploiting weaving as an income-generating activity. The study also found that the women who took group loans for setting up weaving activities often found the funds to be insufficient for commercial viability.
If these three activities are considered together, it can be said that, for poorer women, an income-generating activity is suitable if it:
- has low labour requirements (and can be combined with domestic tasks);
- requires existing skills or know-how (i.e., it is incremental rather than new for the women);
- has low start-up costs (i.e., no major requirements for capital expenditure);
- produces a rapid cash cycle (i.e., the women do not have to wait six months to a year for it to generate cash);
- has ease of marketing (i.e., is suitable for year-round markets with easy physical access); and
- allows women to control it and its resulting income (i.e., husbands will not claim it).
The poor, and especially poor women, tend to be risk averse. All these factors help to lower the risks involved in investing in an income-generating activity.
One of the important lessons from these three activities is on the relationship between choice of activity and labour requirements, in a situation where women are already overworked. Poorer women, in particular, are more likely to have excessive workloads. Where a new enterprise has high labour requirements, poor women are unlikely to become involved, even if it has an attractive profit potential.
Adapted from:
Nongbri, Tiplut. 2000. Empowering Women through Self-help Groups: A Case Study of Three Naga Villages, Manipur. Rome: IFAD.
