Introduction

Women’s access to productive agricultural assets, such as land, livestock, and agricultural inputs, is indispensable to their active participation and empowerment. In today’s global world, women contribute considerably to the agricultural sector in general, in underdeveloped economies in particular. However, women in agrarian household still go through many systemic barriers to owning and controlling these assets (FAO, 2018). In South Asia, and Pakistan specifically, gender disparities in land ownership and asset control are attributed to various factors such as cultural, legal, and policy frameworks (Agarwal, 1994; Ali & Khalid, 2019). In Pakistan, women constitute around 40-50% of the agricultural labor force, but less than 5% own land independently (Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, 2020; Hussain et al., 2019). This land ownership disparity circumscribes women’s decision-making power in farming activities, access to credit, and ability to invest in productivity-enhancing technologies, consequently limiting their economic empowerment (Quisumbing et al., 2014).

The local of this study is Pakpatan (Pir ghani), which is mainly agrarian district where wheat and maize are the main crops (Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, 2020). The reality is that women form an important part of agricultural workforce, but they are still sidelined regarding property ownership and decision-making. According to Labour Force Survey (PBS, 2020-21), approximately 65 percent of rural women in Pakpattan are working in the agriculture sector mostly in informal or unpaid labour. Furthermore, the process of legally owning agricultural land by women in the district is less than 2 (Punjab Land Records Authority, 2021), indicating that there is an evident issue of gender inequalities in terms of accessing and controlling assets. Although the current literature indicates a close relationship between land ownership and empowerment results (greater household welfare, food security and control of decision-making) of women (Bibi et al., 2020; Deere and Leon, 2001), the studies tend to ignore local socio-cultural contexts like patrilocal residence patterns and inheritance practices of women. Moreover, the relationships between the assets ownership and their influence on women empowerment have only been reported in the past without looking at the various categories of women. Nonetheless, this paper, recognizes the local environment of various groups of women in the district. And, contrasts the role of access to and ownership of productive resources on their inclusion and empowerment. Thus, covering a significant evidence gap and educate more gender-responsive agricultural and land policies in Pakpattan.

The involvement of women in agriculture, especially in livestock and crop sectors, is crucial towards rural livelihood and food security in a country. Nevertheless, the degree to which they are involved is often limited by socio-cultural standards, access to resources, and the lack of support of the policy (FAO, 2019). In Pakistan, women play an important role in crop farming as well as in keeping livestock, but have to endure systemic limitations that limit their usefulness and empowerment (Ali & Khalid, 2019). The Government of Pakistan has realized this and, therefore, has devised different policies that seek to increase the role of women in the agricultural industry. The National Policy Development and Empowerment of Women (2018) focuses on enhancing access of women to land, credit and agricultural extension services and markets. Also, there are industry-specific initiatives within the Ministry of National Food Security and Research that facilitate increased involvement of women in livestock and crop production (Government of Pakistan, 2018).

Nevertheless, these efforts fail to eliminate the gaps in the implementation as a result of insufficient gender mainstreaming, cultural limitations, and ineffective monitoring (FAO, 2019; World Bank, 2020). As an illustration, although the coverage of extension services is farmers in general, women farmers are not always included because of mobility barriers and social principles (Mahmood, 2017). Moreover, livestock policies can be more easily accessible to women, as the work with livestock has been considered a female sphere, and no one has participated in the crop sector since it is regarded as a male sphere (Ali & Khalid, 2019).

It is essential to review the current policies and their efficacy in order to find out the strengths, weaknesses, and the areas to be improved. The analysis can guide the future policy formulation to increase the role of women in both crop and livestock production that will result in higher agricultural productivity and empowerment of women. The issue of enhancing women involvement and empowerment in agricultural activities entails the need not only to identify the factors that women are challenged by but also to organize policy interventions that are effective in mitigating the challenges. In Pakistan and globally, the lack of access to land, credit, extension services, and markets restricts the potential contributions of women to the agricultural productivity and rural development (FAO, 2018; World Bank, 2020). Policies that are currently in place in Pakistan like the National Policy for Development and Empowerment of Women (2018) have established some foundational promises on gender equity. Nonetheless, the tangible progress is hindered by the constant socio-cultural limitations, policy implementation gaps, and insufficient gender mainstreaming (Mahmood, 2017; FAO, 2019). The policy proposals should be contextual, inclusive and address structural disparities in order to promote meaningful participation and empowerment. Some of the strategies, such as enhancing land rights of women, more gender sensitive extension and training, improving access to financial institutions, and encouraging women-led agricultural operations, have demonstrated success in various contexts (Quisumbing et al., 2014; Deere and Leon, 2001).

The goal of the research is to build on policy suggestions that can be implemented on the basis of empirically collected data about Pakpattan, which is to address the barriers that are associated with land inheritance, marital residence, and possession of productive assets. This kind of proposal will help in ensuring an enabling environment in which women can engage in crop and livestock sectors, which will eventually lead to better livelihood and agricultural results.