Empowering Women in Agriculture
Summary
In 2019, Batey Relief Alliance committed to launch a holistic women’s empowerment initiative in Dominican Republic that will support 125 batey women in adopting market-oriented strategies in agriculture and livestock production and enhance their social wellbeing through providing healthcare services. Despite their size and critical role in the economy, batey populations, particularly women and girls, suffer inordinately from gender inequality, economic isolation, and extreme poverty. In many cases, women cannot obtain education, employment, financial credibility and assets, and healthcare, perpetuating a circle of poverty. With their partners, Batey Relief Alliance will provide technical assistance, inputs, and small loans to help women sustain their agricultural enterprises and increase household income. Batey Relief Alliance will also provide participants with healthcare and nutritional assistance including maternal-child health services, clean drinking water, multivitamins, antiworm drugs, and nutritional supplements. Through this commitment, women will engage in employment, gain greater autonomy, and enhance their overall wellbeing.
Approach
To address the lack of opportunities for women and girls in batey communities, Batey Relief Alliance will launch a holistic women’s empowerment initiative that will support 125 women in adopting market-oriented strategies in agriculture and livestock production and enhance their social wellbeing through providing healthcare services and hygiene products. With their partners, including the Office of the Vice President of the Dominican Republic and GILDAN, the commitment will provide technical assistance, agricultural inputs, and small loans in the agriculture and livestock fields.
Batey Relief Alliance’s technical staff will guide women in adopting a 12-month plan to respond to market demands in agriculture and animal husbandry. In-kind inputs (e.g. livestock, feed, seed, fertilizer) and small cash loans (average of $200) will be distributed to catalyze startup of new strategies. Through its Cooperative Microcredit Program—BRAteyana, Batey Relief Alliance will renew loans, when possible, to in-good-standing borrowers to allow the women to sustain their agricultural enterprises using their own capital generated from the initial loans. Batey Relief Alliance’s technical staff will conduct field-based agricultural training for each participant. Batey Relief Alliance will then conduct four follow up visits per beneficiary to ensure the adoption of recommended agricultural practices. Batey Relief Alliance will organize two field-based events, linking participating women to area buyers of livestock and produce. Batey Relief Alliance will assist each woman in developing a new sales agreement with at least one local buyer, establishing a sustainable business relationship and increasing income.
Batey Relief Alliance will also provide privately funded maternal-child health services, HIV antivirals, clean drinking water, multivitamins, antiworm drugs, and nutritional supplements. Batey Relief Alliance will invite participating households to apply based on need, with attention to the following criteria: living below poverty line; best potential for agricultural productivity; demonstrated need for healthcare assistance; demonstrated ability/willingness to participate; and need for nutritional assistance.
Lastly, Batey Relief Alliance will train 180 males around gender and sexual-based violence against women.
Action Plan
Build capacity of participants in agricultural production:(1) 1/19: Conduct pre evaluation to determine participants’ socio-economic conditions, (2) 1/19: Conduct household survey to evaluate gender equality and response approaches, (3) Quarterly: Offer technical assistants around agricultural development techniques, (4) Monthly: Offer skills training building cooperative, banking, small business enterprises, (5) 2/19: Provide micro loans to engage in income-producing activities, (6) 10/19: Conduct Harvest Day, (7) 6/19: Help participants develop production/marketing/sales strategies, (8) 10/19: Conduct results evaluations, (9) Quarterly: Conduct follow-up meetings, (10) 11/19: Conduct post evaluation to determine impacts, (11) 12/19: Hold Graduation Day.
Build capacity of participants in preventive health: (1) Monthly: train participants as community health promoters, (2) Monthly: hold workshops around WASH techniques, (3) Bi-monthly, weekly: provide participants access to maternal-child health, micronutrients, clean drinking water, and nutrition.
Background
The “bateyes” are highly vulnerable rural communities settled around sugar cane plantations. They were built by the Dominican government to house Haitian migrant cane cutters when sugar production was the primary source of revenues for the Dominican Republic, more than two decades ago. The privatization and automation of the national sugar industry in the early 1990s left batey residents without employment, leaving thousands without purchasing power. As a result, many women turned to transactional and commercial sex for survival. Estimates of the population living and working on these bateyes vary greatly, ranging from 200,000 to over 1 million, and accounting for anywhere between 7-12% of the nation’s total population. Despite their size and critical role in the Dominican economy, batey populations, particularly women and girls, suffer inordinately from gender inequality, economic isolation, and extreme poverty.
Most of the women and girls are undocumented and therefore cannot formally obtain education, employment or publicly-funded services; own land or a home; open a bank account or have credit; and consequently, are condemned to a circle of poverty. Their reproductive and sexual rights are often violated while face some of the nation’s highest illiteracy, HIV, pregnancy and unemployment rates. Fertility reaches as high as 4.0, well above the 2.8 national averages. Only 1.2% of the women reported using condoms for protection against pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections. The national HIV infection rate is 1% versus 5% in the bateyes.
Women and girls also face gender and sexual-based violence. Despite laws against domestic violence being in force for years, violence against women and girls continues to rise. And, those who are financially dependent are often obliged to remain with their aggressors in dangerous relationships. In recent years, femicide has become one of the leading causes of death among women of reproductive age in the country.
Progress Update
December 2019
In December 2019, the Batey Relief Alliance completed its commitment to empower women in the Dominican Republic’s agriculture sector. Over one year, 175 women participated in the Batey Relief Alliance’s program, attaining healthcare and increasing their economic autonomy. 140 women received health well visits that included nutritional support, eye care, prenatal care, reproductive healthcare, and health screenings. Additionally, 150 tons of food, 21 million liters of water, 2.2 million P&G water purification tablets, millions of dollars’ worth of medical supplies, micronutrients and medicines were distributed to the community. In partnership with the United Nations Federal Credit Union Fund, each woman received a $200 cash loan to start their agribusiness. Batey Relief Alliance’s commitment created a total of 175 jobs for women, reducing poverty, improving food security, and empowering them to participate in agricultural decisions.
Partnership Opportunities
Financial resources are needed to assist beneficiaries who are unable to meet their financial/loan obligations due to unforeseen adverse circumstances; to help beneficiaries scale up their businesses to meet increased local demands; to purchase additional agricultural materials for beneficiaries to expand production and increase revenues; to purchase a truck to transport beneficiary products for sale to local market; and to provide technical (computer) assistance in computer use and other skills.
Best practice information is needed to help strengthen the commitment in areas of agricultural production, marketing and sales; technology; micro finance and gender-based violence management.
Media support is needed to rebuild Batey Relief Alliance’s website as a platform to promote its new “Women’s Empowerment Initiative” and the commitment’s results and social-economic impacts., Batey Relief Alliance can offer best practice services in terms of general health expertise, including health and HIV prevention and care delivery, community health promotion, comprehensive health approach to rural health, health program design, etc.