The present study was undertaken to ascertain whether rural women are empowered in a matrilineal society in India. In a state where traditional institutions function on the basis of local customs and conventions that are not codified and yet religiously followed, it is questionable to whether the women are essentially empowered. In such a scenario, one wonders if owning land is enough to empower a woman. The objective of this study is to check if whether land ownership empowers a woman and if it gives her decision-making power in the household. The study was conducted at one village from each of the two districts in Meghalaya- the East Khasi Hills and the West Khasi Hills. Fifty female respondents from each district were made to answer a structured questionnaire, after which four respondents had to be eliminated, as they were unmarried and eighteen respondents had to be dropped as they were either a widow or separated. Probit regression was then used to analyze the data. The results stated that women who inherited land were more likely to have a savings account and be a part of a socio-economic group. From this it can be concluded, that women who owned land through lineage were empowered, however the fact that they still consider their husbands to be the head of the family, makes us consider that there may be a psychological component to it.
In a matrilineal society, where women own land, one would expect women would hold the seat of power and be treated with respect. However, while women are treated with immense respect in the rural areas of Meghalaya, India, domestic violence, child marriage, and the lack of family planning impact the empowerment status of women. In Meghalaya, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and self-help groups (SHGs) play a very pivotal role in women's empowerment by providing basic education, vocational training for selfemployment, legal aid, protection for woman, and self-awareness programmes. To understand Meghalaya's contraceptive use and fertility rates despite it being a matrilineal society, this study investigated the roles of the government, NGOs, SHGs, and village leaders in educating women on the repercussions of child marriage, combating domestic violence, and the advantages of family planning. The study also aims to shed light on the importance of the village headman, as well as the disconnect between the views of the village headmen and women in leadership positions in the village when it comes to women's issues. The study was conducted in two districts: East Khasi Hills and West Khasi Hills. The following groups were interviewed: the government departments of the Meghalaya Social Welfare Department, National Rural Health Mission, and the Women's Special Cell; four NGOs; and 20 village headmen, 12 presidents of the female unit, and 13 SHGs from each village. From this case study, it was found that while there may be different perceptions of reality between the village leaders, government, and NGOs, when it came to the eradication of social issues, the three groups were closely aligned in goals. It was also found that views differed between the society's men and women when it came to the above-mentioned women's issues. These findings stress the importance of women's representation in the local governance system.
In this research, 600 Chinese and Japanese consumers were divided into four groups to analyze consumers’ marginal willingness to pay for environmentally friendly farming (EFF) produce. We found that Chinese consumers had high awareness of green foods, while Japanese consumers were more familiar with organic produce than specially cultivated produce, perhaps because the latter has not yet received uniform national certification in Japan. Choice experiments show that EFF produce prices and consumers’ income critically affect consumers’ decision to pay, especially in China. After each group read different formal definitions of EFF produce, Chinese consumers still preferred green food certification, whereas Japanese consumers chose specially cultivated carrots. Both displayed different ideological purchasing behaviors through added interaction terms with an increase in education. When no information was given, Japanese consumers’ purchasing decisions became more positive as their education levels rose. Possibly, highly educated Chinese consumers emphasize pragmatism, whereas Japanese consumers emphasize the connection between environmental protection and agriculture. Therefore, EFF messaging should be differentiated by region. For distributors committed to international trade in EFF products between developing and developed markets, we suggest lower costs, differentiated product messaging, and community initiatives events to enhance trade and marketing in both China and Japan.
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