85.7 per cent of rural respondents made income decisions only after discussing it with their families
On International Women’s Day, nurture.farm, India’s leading AgTech startup, announced the results of an internal survey conducted for women as a part of its Women In Agriculture (WiA) programme.
The WIA survey found that 90 per cent of rural respondents spend their income to fulfil familial obligations/responsibilities. The survey also saw that 85.7 per cent of rural respondents made income decisions only after discussing it with their families. In contrast, only 43 per cent of urban respondents sought family opinions while making their income-related decisions. When it came to safety and health, the survey found that 80 per cent of rural respondents do not have health/life insurance, while the number was cut in half in urban areas, with 40.5 per cent not having health/life insurance.
The survey further revealed that 43.5 per cent of rural women do not use any digital modes of payment, while 100 per cent of the urban respondents used them. Besides, 34.3 per cent of rural respondents did not have any savings plan, and 41.8 per cent have only just learned about financial planning, which they intend to explore soon. 85.3 per cent of rural women learned about finance management from it.
Around 95.7 per cent of rural respondents felt optimistic, seeing immense potential in the agriculture sector and wishing to remain invested. In addition, 80 per cent of rural women felt their opinions on family matters were sought more than before, now that they are earning and are financially independent. At 80.5 per cent, the urban counterparts seemed to be on par with them. Realising the respect and importance that they receive, 60.3 per cent of women from rural India identified these as their primary motivators to continue working.
81.7 per cent of rural working women and 78.6 per cent of urban women workers prefer flexible working hours. Apart from this, 60 per cent of women manage household chores themselves, before/after/in-between their work schedules. However, gender inclusiveness continues to be a challenge, with 64.3 per cent of rural women feeling men have better opportunities to be gainfully employed. In urban regions, 80 per cent of women felt men had better work opportunities.
