Gender relations and agricultural production in rural Mozambique. Understanding the cash and non-cash flows at plot-level in central Mozambique

Abstract

Agriculture is the main economic activity for 80% of the population in Mozambique. The relatively low contribution to the country´s GDP reflects the informal nature of agriculture, where many women are involved through transactions not always by monetary means. Numerous households are involved in both commercial and subsistence farming through landholdings managed by different members of the household. The impact of gender relations on plot management and organization are poorly understood due to the heterogeneity and gender norms specific to place-specific cultures. The division of rights, responsibilities and labor of different members of the household are characteristic of how men and women access, control and participate in decision-making processes. Cash and non-cash flows are research to better understand the roles of each sex within the full cycle of agriculture. Women´s participation is suggested to be limited, however in this thesis the concept of market participation only based on cash is challenged by answering the following research question: how do men and women attribute economic value in small-scale commercial agricultural production in Bárue District, Mozambique; and to what extent are these economic values represented in cash and non-cash flows?. An ethnographic methodology is used to perform an in-depth study of gender relations in the locality of Inhazonia in central Mozambique. Through two case studies this thesis documents the related cash and non-cash flows with a gender perspective with the goal to inform policy makers to safeguard women´s involvement as productive agents when designing development projects. To summarize the main findings, it is important to consider that commercial and subsistence agriculture are not perceived as completely separate and that decisions and control over resources are deeply entrenched in how men and women understand their role within their agricultural plots, their household, and the wider community.