Female labor outcomes and large-scale agricultural land investments: Macro-micro evidencefrom Tanzania

Abstract

This paper examined the extent to which Large-scale Agricultural Land Investments (LALIs) has delivered on its promises (e.g. increased productivity, job creation, and rural development, particularly for rural women). We conducted empirical analyses using the Living Standards Measurement Study-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) dataset (macro evidence), which was complemented with two case studies of LALIs in Kilombero district, Morogoro region, Tanzania (micro evidence). The findings from the study revealed that the LALIs have limited effect on agricultural wage. However, the results show that LALIs have a negative association with the welfare of female-headed households located in communities with LALIs. On the micro evidence, we found that female-headed households working in the LALIs earned slightly lower agricultural wage compared to those not working in the LALIs. This implies that the use of LALIs in Tanzania to drive agricultural transformation requires specific targeting of potential beneficiaries.