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Executive summary
In 2017, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Papua New Guinea (PNG) commissioned a gender assessment of the agriculture and rural sector in Papua New Guinea. The assessment was carried out in consultation with the Women in Agriculture Development Unit (WiADU) of the National Department of Agriculture and Livestock (NDAL), in line with FAO- Papua New Guinea’s continued commitment to support the Government of Papua New Guinea.
The methodology included a review of reports, literature and documents related to women’s engagement in agriculture and the rural sector in Papua New Guinea. Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were also held with selected staff at NDAL and Provincial and District Division of Primary Industries (DPI) offices and with representatives of donors, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other development partners, as well as with women and men farmers.
An estimated 52 percent of the population of Papua New Guinea are men and 48 percent are women.
The majority of the population lives in rural areas (87.5 percent). Agriculture is key for the country’s economy, mainly dominated by smallholder farming systems engaged in both cash crop production, most notably coffee and cocoa, and subsistence production. Papua New Guinea faces persisting institutional and governance challenges in creating an enabling environment for promoting and enhancing women’s participation in food value chains (NARI, 2002). Gender disparities are seen in access to and control over key agricultural and rural resources and services, knowledge, opportunities and markets. Rural women are major contributors to the economy – on farms, at home and in the community – but their rights are not properly recognized and they have not benefitted equally from past economic growth. They are systematically excluded from access to resources, essential services, and decision-making.
Women’s participation in Papua New Guinea’s labour force through employment and entrepreneurship lies at about 70 percent, slightly less than men’s at 71 percent (UNDP, 2016b). More than 50 percent of the female labour force is engaged in agriculture and women comprise nearly 35 percent of the economically active population in agriculture. Rural women play a prominent role in subsistence food production, agricultural value chains and rural livelihoods. They actively participate in livestock and poultry production and in fish farming. They sell their surplus produce, generally at local markets, to generate income for their families. Women have also ventured into small to medium enterprise activities.
They own and operate a wide range of farm and non-farm microenterprises, mostly in the informal economy, which enable rural households to diversify and secure their income sources.
Rural women are challenged by their multiple roles and chronic time poverty. They have the primary responsibility for ensuring the nutritional, childcare and health needs of their families. This is in addition to the many community, social and cultural activities they are expected to engage in, as well as their involvement in agriculture-related activities. Given these multiple roles, rural women tend to lack the time to participate in other opportunities that could potentially contribute to enhancing their autonomy, knowledge, skills and self-esteem.
Security challenges in Papua New Guinea, including the high rate of gender-based violence, restrict women’s and girls’ mobility outside of their homes and communities. Such a lack of mobility tends to exclude women from key downstream activities within value chains, such as selling to exporters, therefore limiting their access to markets and their control over their income (NSO, 2012).
Lack of training, including in post-harvest skills such as food preservation, proper packaging and storage, is another constraint. Additionally, women generally do not have the collateral to access credit from financial institutions to purchase high-cost farming equipment and supplies such as water tanks, pumps and pipes for proper irrigation. Other inputs such as tools, seedlings, planting materials and rice mills are also expensive to buy. Lack of or limited access to information on various issues also affects rural women and their families’ livelihoods. This includes information related to adequate nutrition, sanitation and general health care, as well as information on economic opportunities and basic financial services.