Extent of empowerment of farm women through backyard poultry farming

Abstract

Descriptive research conducted in the Kumaon division of Uttarakhand, aimed to investigate the socio-economic, communication and psychological characteristics as well as the extent of women's empowerment through backyard poultry. Additionally, it sought to understand the relationship between selected profile characteristics and women's empowerment. A sample of 92 respondents from three selected villages selected for the study, utilizing a pre-tested interview schedule for data collection. Statistical techniques including frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, coefficient of correlation and t-test were employed for data analysis. The findings highlighted that a majority of respondents (67.39%) were in the middle-age bracket. Furthermore, the majority possessed middle school education (35.87%) and belonged to the general category (60.87%). The respondents were primarily farmers with a medium family size (53.84%) and a moderate level of social participation (69.57%). In terms of poultry farming, many had a medium level of experience and the income derived from backyard poultry farming was predominantly at a medium level. The study revealed a medium level of overall empowerment with high levels of social and cultural empowerment. An exploration of the relationship between selected characteristics and the extent of empowerment indicated that age, family size, annual family income, flock size and risk preference did not exhibit significant relationships. Conversely, education displayed a negative and significant relationship, while positive and significant relationships were identified for social participation, poultry farming experience, information-seeking behavior, training exposure, economic motivation and decision-making ability, all at a 5% level of significance.