The Effects of Family Management Agreement on the Increase of Participation in Farm Management among Women Farmers

가족경영협약이 여성농업인의 경영참여 확대에 미치는 효과

Recently some Korean feminists have reported the family management agreement (FMA) can contribute to enhance the women farmers' legal status and to improve their farm management. The FMA is a formal document written each rights and responsibilities on the farm management, income allocation, and labor condition such as working time and work-off days agreed among family members. Since 2004, 161 farmer couples have signed and practiced the FMA after two-day workshop scheduled for the agreement. The purpose of this study is to analyze the effects of FMA on the increase of participation in (am management among women farmers. Data were collected from 204 FMA couples through the structured questionnaires. Also interview and participating observation were carried out. Paired t-test were conducted using SPSS 12.0 for Windows program. Major findings were as follows. Women farmers' participation in decision making of farming activities has significantly increased after than before the FMA. However, husbands' participation in decision making is higher than women farmers even after the FMA. After the FMA, labor compensation, regularly or irregularly, for women farmers has increased to 53.3%, 35.3% higher than 18% of the previous study and women farmers' ownership of their farm assets has increased to 48.1% from 29.1%. Also, there is a tendency women farmers' role as a representative of their farm has increased. In conclusion the FMA makes women farmers participate more in farm management as decision maker, income beneficiary, farm asset owner, and farm representative, which encourage them to get the legal status as a farmer and to control their farm management risk. It is suggested that the FMA be selected as a program in order to strengthen the agricultural competitiveness.