Equity

It is now widely recognised among policymakers and practitioners that women’s ownership of agricultural land is an important determinant of their economic and social status, physical security, and the wellbeing of their family informs this paper titled 'How many and which women own land in India?

Soaring daily temperatures, wildfires in Canada, inexplicably hot ocean currents; the worries around climate change have intensified. The COP28 Summit currently underway in Dubai is looking at all the ways in which human activity is creating uncertainty in the climate as we know it, impacting our lives in a multitude of ways.

“To be successful, climate negotiations need to fulfil three purposes: set the agenda and targets, put in a process for their implementation, and monitor enforcement and progress. The year 2023 has underlined clearly why the UN’s Conference of Parties can not kick the can of climate justice, climate action and climate finance down the road.

Feminisation of agricultural labour in India

India is experiencing masculinisation of labour and while the labour force participation rate (LFPR) of men is increasing, that of women is decreasing. 

Technological innovations in agriculture and fishing have been thought to increase production, productivity, and income, alleviate poverty and reduce workloads. However, they can affect men and women differently by reinforcing gender inequalities, restrict access, and displace women as newly mechanised tasks become the domains of men.

Inadequate sanitation poses significant global risks, affecting over four billion people. Insufficient access to proper facilities leads to social, psychological, and physical threats, contributing to 6.3% of global deaths. India, with one billion residents, grapples with open defecation, affecting half the population.

In India, more than half of the net sown area is rainfed during the monsoon season, which runs from June to September. Climate change affects farming practices, which affects the crucial kharif crop and jeopardises food security. It also affects the monsoon onset in central and northern India.

Small-scale fishers in India are increasingly forced to migrate for their livelihoods – but new research from the University of East Anglia (UEA) finds this can have positive impacts not always seen when labourers have to move for work.

ActionAid Association, in its commitment to work with the most marginalized communities and to build community-led initiatives, hosted a two-day national conclave on June 9- 10, 2023, in Delhi.

India is the largest user of groundwater globally and as high as 85 percent of water is used for irrigation. Groundwater extraction started with the green revolution that increased  food security and reduced poverty. However, it gradually led to drastic depletion in groundwater levels.