The impact of national trade policies at the agriculture subsector on gender equality in Bolivia
- Jennifer Tapia Boada
- Sep 11, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: Oct 3, 2020
The present essay was submitted as a final work to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development course on Trade and Gender with an optional module on the MERCOSUR, on 13 May 2020, which has received a “distinction” mention.
30 September 2020, Geneva.
The present essay focuses on the impact that trade policies at the agriculture subsector can have in improving or worsening gender equality for women in Bolivia[1].
According to UN Women, gender equality refers to “the equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities of women and men, and girls and boys”[2]. In this definition, gender equality is deemed both as a human right, as well as a precondition for, and indicator of, sustainable people-centred development.
With that said, the 2017 Trade Policy Review (TPR) of Bolivia[3] does not include any reference to gender-sensitive trade policies. However, the review revealed that substantial changes were made in the Bolivian economic policy since 2006, with the implementation of an economic social, communitarian and productive model[4] in which the State seeks to redistribute income by transferring resources from the strategic sectors that generate surpluses, (mostly mining and hydrocarbons) to other sectors, mostly run by public enterprises, that promote income and employment.
The implementation of such model brought along a significant reduction of poverty rates. In that sense, the country´s trade policy aims to primarily satisfy domestic consumption; for instance, by guarantying food security and energy supply; prioritize the domestic market, and spur domestic production. I
In this line, the new 2009 Constitution provides that trade policy must be applied in such a way as to ensure that domestic demand for essential products and for the inputs required for the production of strategic goods can be met. To meet that objective, imports may be regulated through changes in tariffs, the use of quotas, and prior licencing. With regards to exports, they may be subject to prior verification of the domestic market supply. In addition, Bolivian suppliers and producers are offered preference margins ranging from 5% to 35%[5].
At the agriculture sector, although the export of goods is guaranteed, if the domestic production of a staple product is deemed insufficient for satisfying internal market and guaranteeing food security, the export of that product might be suspended, might be subject to export quotas, or the import tariff of such product may be reduced temporarily. On the other hand, the agricultural sector yielded an average annual rate of 2.8%, but it continues to be relatively concentrated. By 2016, 71.8% of agricultural exports were composed of oilseeds (primarily soya), and cereal[6].
The fact that Bolivia´s trade policy gives preference to domestic consumption and production through variations on trade regulations with respect to domestic market conditions (E.g. regulating imports through tariffs changes, imposing import quotas; regulating domestic prices of the family basket; importing directly by the State; regulating exports through prior verification on domestic supply; suspending and prohibiting exports; imposing export quotas and prior requirements, among others)[7], besides reducing the predictability of the trade regime and potentially destabilizing some directly related sectors, it can also dynamically impact women in their different economic roles.
For instance, a sudden decision to reduce import tariffs of food goods can increase competition at the domestic market and therefore reduce domestic prices of agricultural products; this can, in turn, erode women wage-workers and own-account workers’ earnings in the agricultural sector, especially among small-scale and subsistence-oriented staple food production farmers.
Similarly, the reduction of domestic prices of agricultural goods can erode the earnings of women-traders of locally-produced goods.[8] However, a reduction of import tariffs on food products may also benefit women-traders that sell those imports for domestic consumption, as well to women as consumers of those goods.
In terms of exports, a sudden suspension of the export of certain agricultural products may potentially hamper the access to external markets for women entrepreneurs, and endanger work security for export-oriented women workers in Bolivia.
On such context, from the period 2006 to 2017, the percentage of female workers at the agriculture sector of the total female employed population in rural areas in Bolivia decreased from 81.7% to 72.9%[9]. Similarly, the percentage of female employment in agriculture, of the total female employment, decreased from 34.4% in 2004 to 30.6 % in 2017[10].
In broader terms, the female labour force participation rate decreased from 63.9% in 2004 to 60.8% in 2017.[11] In addition, by 2018, the general labour force participation remained male-dominated in relation to women, with 54% of the total share[12]. Moreover, from 2009 to 2017, female vulnerable employment increased from 66.3% to 69.3%[13]. On a positive note, conditions for women entrepreneurs improved in the sense that the time required to start a business for women was reduced from 49 days in 2011, to 41 days in 2017[14].
The macroeconomic policies implemented in a favourable economic context with high export commodity prices in Bolivia, have yielded a remarkable reduction of moderate poverty in the period from 2006 to 2018, which decreased from 48.1% to 23.1%[15]. The GINI inequality index also dropped from 0.55 to 0.42 in the same period[16]. Together with these figures, the economic model brought along a notable rise in social welfare policies implemented in the last 15 years.
Notwithstanding these efforts, gender-sensitive sectoral trade policies that take into account the needs of women farmers, women exporters and traders of agricultural goods are still needed to guarantee equal economic opportunities for women. Such measures should include, inter alia, the improvement of access to training for production techniques, rural finance, land-rights, and the conduction of ex ante evaluations that considers the possible adverse effects to the most vulnerable female farmers and workers, prior to the implementation of trade policies.
In addition, availability of sex-disaggregated data on agricultural holders, and information on the time spent on unpaid domestic and care work is necessary for strengthening gender equality, as this type of information continues to be scanty on public records.
References
[1] A traditional categorization of a country´s economy distinguishes four main sectors: The primary sector, which encompasses activities related to the extraction of raw materials; The second sector, which encompasses activities related to manufacturing; the third sector, which refers to the service industry; and the quaternary sector, which includes activities related to information- and knowledge-based services. Based on this categorization, the agriculture subsector makes part of the primary sector.
-Kenessey, Z. The Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and Quaternary Sectors of the Economy [PDF File]. http://www.roiw.org/1987/359.pdf
[2] Office of the Special Advisor on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women -United Nations (2001). Gender Mainstreaming: Strategy for Promoting Gender Equality [PDF File]. https://www.un.org/womenwatch/osagi/pdf/factsheet1.pdf
[3] World Trade Organization (2017). Trade Policy Review, Report by the Secretariat, Plurinational State of Bolivia. [PDF File]. https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/s363_e.pdf
[4] (MESCP)
[5] World Trade Organization (2017). Trade Policy Review, Report by the Secretariat, Plurinational State of Bolivia. [PDF File].
[6]The main export product is soya bean residues.
World Trade Organization (2017). Trade Policy Review, Report by the Secretariat, Plurinational State of Bolivia. [PDF File].
[7] increase or decrease of tariffs, regulation of trade flows; regulation of exports through the imposition of quotas requiring authorization.
– World Trade Organization (2017). Trade Policy Review, Report by the Secretariat, Plurinational State of Bolivia. [PDF File].
[8] United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (2014). Virtual Institute Teaching Material on Trade and Gender Volume 1, New York and Geneva, pp.47-49.
[9] The percentage of men workers also decreased from 80.5% in 2006 to 72.6% in 2017.
-CEPALSTAT Databases (9 de Mayo de 2020) Re: Structure of total employed population, by sector of economic activity, sex, and geographical area, (under Employed Population, of Paid and Unpaid work.) Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia. https://estadisticas.cepal.org/cepalstat/WEB_CEPALSTAT/estadisticasIndicadores.asp?idioma=i
[10] The percentage of male employment in agriculture, of the total male employment also decreased from 35.6% in 2004, to 30.4% in 2017.
-World Development Indicators of the World Bank (9 de Mayo 2020). Re: Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia. https://databank.worldbank.org/source/world-development-indicators
[11] The labour force participation rate is the proportion of the population with ages between 15-64, that is economically active: all people who supply labour for the production of goods and services during a specified period. Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate).
-World Development Indicators of the World Bank (9 de Mayo 2020).
[12] UNCTADSTAT Database (9 de Mayo 2020). Re: General Profile Bolivia (Plurinational State of)
[13] Male vulnerable employment also increased from 52.1% to 59.2% on the same period.
-World Development Indicators of the World Bank (9 de Mayo 2020).
[14] The time required to start a business for males is the same.
World Development Indicators (9 de Mayo 2020).
[15] Poverty headcount ratio at $5.50 a day (2011 PPP) (% of population)
-Macrotrends (10 de mayo de 2020) Re: Bolivia Poverty Rate 1990-2020
[16] World Development Indicators of the World Bank (10 de Mayo 2020).
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