Analysing labour migration through the lens of intersectionality provides valuable insights into the complex identities of women migrant workers and the multiple discriminations they struggle with. Intersectionality advocates argue that only through adopting such an approach can women’s multiple discriminations be challenged. Drawing on a case study of seven non-governmental organisations and one focus group of women migrant workers in a non-Western context, Malaysia, we explore how advocacy organisations understand, interpret and adopt an intersectional approach in advancing the rights of its women migrant workers. We show that there are challenges, specific to the local context, which reduce the likelihood of organisations doing so. The Malaysian experience likely has significance for similar advocacy in other Asian countries.
Frequent inter-spousal communication is regarded as an indicator of safe family planning practice. Nevertheless, communication about family planning within couples in Indonesia is still largely unexplored. This study assessed the levels of inter-spousal communication about family planning and its associated determinants, using cross-sectional and nationally representative data from the 2017 Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey (IDHS), from a randomly selected cohort of 8,925 currently-married couples. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, inter-spousal communication behaviors, and attitudes regarding family planning were collected. The dependent variable in this study is how frequently couples discuss family planning, based on wives’ responses. The analyses were stratified based on the frequency of inter-spousal communication: never, once or twice, or more often. The results of the study were greater husband approval of family planning and communication with family planning field workers, and that those encouraged inter-spousal communication in Indonesia.
Despite the centrality of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) to UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), women migrant workers in Malaysia face an environment inimical to their SRH needs. Drawing on qualitative case study material, we present the first empirical application of the capability approach (CA) to explore the reproductive health needs of women migrant workers in a developing country, offering an original analysis of the capability for SRH of these women. Specifically, we explore the resources available to them; their opportunities and freedoms ("capabilities"); and factors that mediate transformation of resources into capability sets ("conversion factors"). While SRH information and health care are notionally available, women migrant workers face multiple challenges in converting resources into functionings, constraining the achievement of capability for SRH. Challenges include language barriers, personal beliefs, power relations between workers and employers and the consequences of current migration policy. We consider the scale of the challenges facing these women in securing SRH rights, the difficulties of operationalising the CA within such a setting, and the implications of our findings for the adequacy of the CA in supporting marginalised populations.
The Malaysian government established the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification primarily as a response to critics against the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), chief among which is to urge the Malaysian government to play a more proactive role in protecting local palm oil producers. The aim of this study is threefold: (1) to identify why the Malaysian government creates MSPO; (2) to understand how Malaysian actors push for the MSPO; and (3) to investigate the current state of MSPO. We conducted nine expert interviews and four in-depth interviews with oil palm small holders. The study finds that the policy regarding palm oil in Malaysia is predominantly top-down in nature. The study concludes that the establishment and implementation of local palm oil certification standard as an alternative to the RSPO is not as straight-forward and more awareness among the smallholders on the importance of getting certified by MSPO is crucial. MSPO may establish a more effective and clearer line of communication between the federal government and the oil palm producers at the local level specifically small holders. The federal government, state agencies and MPOB needs to create awareness among the smallholders on the importance of getting certified by MSPO.
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