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<p>The contribution of community forest enterprises (CFEs) to women’s socio-economic empowerment is a contested issue. This paper examines the effects of a recently completed two-and-half-year participatory action research (PAR) for economic empowerment of poor and marginalized women in Nepal. The PAR promoted locally suitable 18 women-led low-carbon CFEs in two geographical regions- middle hills and lowland plains and supported women through capacity building and other inputs. Using household level data collected from participant CFE women, the study found that on average, forests and CFEs contribute 10% and 4% of household income, respectively. Such contributions were higher for the poor than the non-poor households, indicating the possibility of improving livelihoods, including poverty reduction, by mobilizing local forest resources. Results also clearly demonstrate that low-carbon CFEs have potentials to empower very poor rural women economically. Despite small contribution of CFEs on household income, the intervention appears to have significant impact on social empowerment. Though all the CFEs may not sustain in the long run, their spillover impacts on women’s entrepreneurship and their empowered agency may have much wider and lasting impacts at household and societal level. We conclude that despite some challenges, livelihoods improvement, low carbon development and women empowerment can be achieved by supporting women in forest based enterprises.</p>

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Do Forest-Based Micro-Enterprises Empower Women Economically and Socially?

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年1月30日

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  • Bishnu Prasad Sharma,
  • Harisharan Luintel,
  • Roshan Karmacharya,
  • Naya Sharma Paudel,
  • Srijana Baral

摘要

The contribution of community forest enterprises (CFEs) to women’s socio-economic empowerment is a contested issue. This paper examines the effects of a recently completed two-and-half-year participatory action research (PAR) for economic empowerment of poor and marginalized women in Nepal. The PAR promoted locally suitable 18 women-led low-carbon CFEs in two geographical regions- middle hills and lowland plains and supported women through capacity building and other inputs. Using household level data collected from participant CFE women, the study found that on average, forests and CFEs contribute 10% and 4% of household income, respectively. Such contributions were higher for the poor than the non-poor households, indicating the possibility of improving livelihoods, including poverty reduction, by mobilizing local forest resources. Results also clearly demonstrate that low-carbon CFEs have potentials to empower very poor rural women economically. Despite small contribution of CFEs on household income, the intervention appears to have significant impact on social empowerment. Though all the CFEs may not sustain in the long run, their spillover impacts on women’s entrepreneurship and their empowered agency may have much wider and lasting impacts at household and societal level. We conclude that despite some challenges, livelihoods improvement, low carbon development and women empowerment can be achieved by supporting women in forest based enterprises.