Forest GLOBAL GENDER AND ENVIRONMENT OUTLOOK Energy Chapter 2


Box 2.6.6: The impacts of male migration on gender equality


In Nepalese villages with different social structures and migration patterns, increased rates of male migration in one village created space in which women could participate actively in community forestry (Basnett 2013). This finding is echoed in a study of community forestry user groups in Ramechhap, Nepal, where wives left behind without adult men in the household took part in general assemblies more frequently and made their voices heard in decision-making (Giri and Darnhofer 2010). However, in a low-caste village studied by Basnett, male migration contributed to the creation of a “remittance class” which used community forestry as a platform to wage a caste-based struggle. Gender inequalities were further entrenched along with those of class and seniority. Women were able to participate only nominally in community forestry decision-making, and the rules established sidelined their interest in gaining secure access to fodder and fuelwood.


Community forestry initiatives (or devolution of forest management to the local level) are often seen as a means of obtaining both social and environmental co-benefits. Over one-tenth of the world’s forests are estimated to be managed through community forestry arrangements (Maryudi and Krott 2012). Proponents of such arrangements emphasize that the ability to conserve forests depends critically on local people’s involvement and active participation (Agrawal and Gibson 1999). Others point out that ensuring local communities have a right to participate in forest management will ensure they receive fair rewards and benefits (Dolisca et al. 2009). A wide range of studies across Africa and Asia demonstrate that community forestry offers opportunities for sustainable management of forests and enhanced livelihoods (CIFOR 2016; Benjamin 2010; Pandit and Bevilacqua 2010; Sunam and McCarthy 2010; Gobeze et al. 2009).


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participation can be defined as attending meetings and speaking up, but it can also be defined by the share of women in office-bearing positions. Analyzing 135 executive committees of Indian and Nepali community forestry institutions, Agarwal (2010) found that a critical mass of around one-third women in executive committees correlated positively with meeting attendance and speaking up. Regardless of their numbers, though, the positions women occupied were usually supportive rather than office-bearing. Agarwal also found that executive committees with a higher proportion of landless women had a greater female voice. The author attributed this to less social pressure on poor women to comply with social norms and the greater stake of landless women in forest access. This underlines the importance of involving disadvantaged women in particular. However, a study on female participation in India’s Forest Rights Act (FRA) – which legitimizes marginalized groups’ access to ancestral forested lands, promotes collective management of forests, and provides tribal and other groups with the


Through self-help groups, capacity building workshops, and programs that link farmers to inputs and markets, small-scale women farmers are empowered across India Photo credit: © McKay Savage


option of pursuing individual and community-owned land titles through establishing claims committees – found that while FRA rules ensured one-third female membership in most claims committees, meaningful participation by women was limited in cases where women-friendly issues were put forward. The author argues that this was due to the participation of “critical actors” rather than a critical mass. Increasing the number of women in such institutions, according to the author, increases the likelihood that critical actors will be present (Bhalla 2015).


The interface between gender, participation and community forestry has impacts on pre-existing gender relations and on relative participation by women and men in community forestry decision-making processes. These include changes in the intra-household decision- making process and in the allocation of land, labour and capital. One such change is migration and agrarian transformation. The short-term effect of male migration is an increased workload for women without greater


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