Prepared by Muzna Alvi, Prapti Barooah and Shweta Gupta

1. Women’s access
to agriculture
extension amidst
COVID-19
Insights from India
and Nepal
Muzna Alvi, Prapti Barooah and
Shweta Gupta
International Food Policy
Research Institute (IFPRI)
14th September 2021

2. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
Extension systems in India and Nepal
• Formal extension system predominantly based on government institutions
and on traditional contact/face-to-face methods
• “Training and visit” approach
• Mostly male extension workers
• Caste networks-large landholding farmers get access
• Women’s & their role marginalized
• In Nepal- formal extension heavily donor funded
• Recent changes to more participatory extension
• Farmer and demand led extension
• Use of technology- eg Andhra Pradesh app based extension
• Leveraging cooperatives in Nepal, frontline workers in livestock in Bihar
• In India 30% of the total budget allocation for women beneficiaries- but
women less than 25% of participants in activities.
• Formal systems lacking ▲ reliance on informal sources, vulnerable to
crisis

3. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
Background
• India: Gujarat- 9
districts
• Nepal: Dang
district, Province 5
(mid-western
region)- 4
municipalities
Objective: Panel phone survey to understand the gendered
impact of COVID-19 lockdown
• India: Round 1-
May-June 2020,
Round 2- Aug-Sep
2020
• Nepal: Round 1-
July 2020, Round
2- Sep 2020
• India: Round 1-
228, Round 2-222
• SEWA
members
• Nepal: Round 1-
435, Round 2- 411
• HH listing
Results based on agriculture extension module- access, quality & frequency
of agricultural information & extension, and impacts on agriculture
productivity
Location Timeline Sample Size

4. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
Key findings
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
India Nepal India Nepal
Before lockdown After lockdown
Share
of
Households
Primary sources of agricultural information
Traditional knowledge Group meetings
Neighbour/ family Govt extension sources
Input dealers
• 27% in India and 29% in Nepal reported non-
availability of regular source of agricultural
information in round 1
• Nepal: 53% felt quality of information was worse
during round 1; 62% felt it was more infrequent
compared to pre-lockdown
Impact on agriculture extension sources Impact on farm productivity
• Farm productivity suffered due to
limited information access
• India: Productivity suffered more for
staple/horticulture crops(51%) than
cash crops (40%); remote districts faced
more challenges
• Major issues: India- lower yield and
poor quality; Nepal- limited availability
of inputs, pest attack, lower yield
Heterogeneity of impacts
• India- Caste determines primary source
of agricultural extension
• Nepal: Level of education influences
reliance on govt. sources
• Nepal: Adverse impact on farm
productivity reported less by primary
agricultural decision makers

5. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
Towards crisis-resilient inclusive extension
• Crisis increases need for reliable and inclusive extension.
• ICT based interventions an entry point for low cost remotely
delivered information
• Unequal phone access
• Heterogeneity in literacy, phone ownership and use
• Farmer field schools targeting women
• Multiple demands of women’s time
• Mobility restrictions
• Female extension workers
• Group-based extension
• SEWA, PRADAN, FECOFUN
• Community frontline workers
• Tested and successful model- Use in health and livestock
• Training and adequate compensation

6. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
Crisis adaptation in action
• Project to test innovative extension methods in Gujarat India
• Initial idea- videos and posters on solar pumps
• Expensive
• Hard to acquire/ subsidy modalities-land ownership etc.
• Require market and credit access
• COVID affected income and purchasing power
• Needs and demands shifted- fertilizer large expense-how to reduce
expenditure?
• Soil testing for balanced nutrient management
• Videos and posters shown in villages, not at SEWA centers

7. Updated: 1 Dec 2020
References
Alvi, M., Barooah, P., Gupta, S., & Saini, S. (2021). Women’s
access to agriculture extension amidst COVID-19: Insights from
Gujarat, India and Dang, Nepal. Agricultural Systems, 188,
103035. (link)