Interrelationships between labour outmigration, livelihoods, rice productivity and gender roles

Abstract

Rice is the principal source of staple food, employment and income of the rural population of Asia. The rice that is grown under rainfed conditions confronts drought, submergence, problem soils and other abiotic stresses. Moreover, scope is limited for increasing incomes through rice cultivation alone, owing to the small size of farms in rice-based systems. In irrigated rice environments, excessive pesticide and fertilizer use have also led to degradation of the environment and thus limited the yield potential of modern rice varieties. Farmers suffer from low profitability due to high input costs and low prices for paddy (unhusked rice). Poor farming households that are also net buyers of rice are affected by food prices, including those of rice