Author: Aye Chan Myae
AIT Library Call Number: AIT Thesis no.GD-16-10
Year: 2016
Academic Program: Gender and Development Studies (GDS)
Type: Thesis (M. Sc.) – Asian Institute of Technology, 2016
Examination Committee: Kyoko Kusakabe (Chairperson); Joyee Shairee Chatterjee, Clemens Grunbuhel (Examination Committee Members)
Abstract: Good governance of land is important for sustainable development of Myanmar because its economic condition is relying on agriculture. With the export-oriented mechanism of former government and market demand of rubber, rubber plantation are booming in Northern Shan State since 2005. This study explored the gender impacts of mushrooming rubber plantation by comparing the changes among two groups: (1) one area where company established rubber by taking upland area from subsistence farmers and (2) area where local farmers grow rubber by themselves. It used both qualitative and quantitative research method. In general, the household cash income of both areas increased after introduction of rubber plantation because of income from different income sources. However, many local people are eating less food, because they have lost their access to forest resources as well as upland cultivation due to the land being taking away by rubber plantation. The local people are relying more on growing cash crop resulting in high investment. Farmers use wage labour and migration as a coping strategy for their livings. There are twice as many male migrants than female migrants leading to labour shortage at the household and increase in de-facto female headed households, More women are encouraging in daily wage labour near their villages. Women are busier with both productive and reproductive activities. Women have to enter productive work due to the consequences of rubber plantation, in turn, women are more visible in decision making. However, women are still less visible in household decision making than men because it is still influent by cultural practices to some extent. Moreover, women are unhappier than before introduction of rubber because of the less access of food, loss ofland and busier resulting from rubber concession.
Scholarship Donor(s): SUMERNET 3 Project; Asian Institute of Technology Fellowship
Note: A thesis in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Gender and Development Studies
Advisory: Full-text is available at https://library.ait.ac.th/ (accessible to local ip address only)
