Women Farmers Key to Boosting Agri Productivity: Corteva

Bhopal, Dec 4 (PTI) Women farmers have the potential to increase agricultural productivity by 20-30 per cent, and bridging gender disparities is crucial for the sector's growth, Subroto Geed, President of Corteva Agriscience (South Asia), said on Wednesday.

Speaking to PTI, Geed outlined the company's strategy to nurture 2 million women farmers by 2030 and emphasised the critical role of Farmers Producers Organisations (FPOs) in empowering women in agriculture, a sector facing significant challenges including climate change and diminishing workforce.

"Whenever women are stepping out and running farms, farm productivity goes up," Geed said and added, "They are more open to adopting new technologies."

Currently, Corteva is associated with 65 FPOs across five states -- Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan -- reaching over 33,000 women farmers. The company sees this as a strategic approach to address multiple agricultural challenges.

Key challenges include India's predominantly marginal farming landscape, climate unpredictability, and the need to increase productivity with fewer resources. Agriculture contributes approximately one-fifth of India's GDP and faces mounting pressures from climate change and workforce reduction.

Geed, who was here for the company's 4th FPOs summit, stressed that the approach extends beyond financial support.

"We're focusing on building capabilities, providing agronomy support, and developing sustainable agricultural practices," he said.

The company's long-term goal is to ensure FPO sustainability by gradually reducing their dependency on financial grants while building farmers' skill sets and organizational capabilities, he said.

With over 8,000 registered FPOs in India, Corteva's current reach is modest. However, the company sees significant potential in scaling up its women-centric agricultural intervention.

"The largest part involved in agriculture is women, yet there's massive disparity from land rights to resource access," Geed noted, underlining the transformative potential of women's participation in farming.