Degree of Esan Women’s Involvement in Farm Labour: Implication for Food Security

Drive towards women empowerment is gaining momentum in recent years. Despite the obvious success recorded among women generally, the case of rural women farmers in particular remains controversial. Some studies have reported increase in women’s access to agricultural productive resources such as land, farm technologies and credit facilities. But the extent to which women continue to engage in farm labour remains scarcely studied. Understanding the current degree to which women engage in farm labour is important for the future of women empowerment and food security. This study was conducted among Esan rural women farmers in Edo State, Nigeria. The sample size consisted of 457 women and the survey questionnaire was used to elicit responses from them on their level of involvement in farm labour. Also, the qualitative method of data collection involving focus group discussion was adopted. Data analysis involved the use of descriptive statistics. Result showed that women engage in every facet of food production from the point of land preparation to distribution, although at different degrees. The paper recommends among others, that women empowerment efforts should be intensified among rural women farmers to enable them contribute maximally to food security