The Women Breaking Cultural Barriers in Pakistan

Discover how a team of female “social mobilizers” are helping rural farming communities in Pakistan thrive by educating and empowering the women of the household.

The Pakistan side of the “Pashtun belt” in the northwest of the country is a major production center for flue-cured Virginia tobacco. The Pashtuns who live there are known for their rich cultural heritage and hospitality, but women face significant social barriers due to ingrained societal practices.

Cultural taboos and stereotypes have led to multiple generations becoming isolated from society and confined to their homes. Despite this, female members of farming families play an integral role and are a driving force behind the success of many farms. PMPKL recognized the influence and knowledge that these women had, creating an environment where they could exchange farming information and learn new skills.

Women Creating Change

In 2021, as part of the “Access to Families” initiative, PMPKL contracted a team of “social mobilizers” who travel around smaller farm holdings in their network to ensure that they’re set up for success. Rather than analyzing crop quality or irrigation, these all-female teams liaise with the farmers’ wives, who run operations on the domestic sides of the farm.

The main goal of these mobilizers is to create awareness of PMI’s Agricultural Labor Practices (ALP) Code, which aims to improve labor practices in its supply chain whilst gaining a better understanding of the activities that take place on the farm. The mobilizers run sessions on ALP and help the families to understand the Code, its principles and measurable standards.

Before this project existed, male field technicians would visit the contracted farms (“Contracted farms” are agricultural farms that are contracted by PMI to supply tobacco.), giving advice to the male farmers on best practices for production and maximizing profits. Whilst these visits served an important functional purpose, cultural restrictions meant the male technicians were not permitted inside the home, nor could they interact with the female members of the farmer’s family who were involved in various activities, including curing, grading, and baling tobacco. This made it difficult for PMPKL to attain a comprehensive picture of what was happening on these farms.

This is where the female mobilizers came in. As they are allowed across the thresholds of these homes, they can work directly with the female spouses and families to both educate and report back on working and living conditions. They do the same for any female workers on the farm, ensuring that they are being treated fairly and correctly. The women also monitor availability of improved drinking water, sanitation (toilets), and handwashing facilities. These visits also allow the mobilizers to monitor the risk of child labor on farms.

They make a record of these practices and check over time to see if they’re being maintained, improved, or require attention.

“There are 13 of us in the project,” said Ammara, one of the social mobilizers.

As women, we can speak to the farmers’ families, make them aware of the ALP Code and monitor them throughout the various crop production stages. We discuss the importance of the Code, how to create a safe work environment, and the women’s role in supporting the farmers.

“In our area, many farmers have curing barns inside their houses, and women work during peak crop activities or cook for farmers and their workers. We also check on any ALP violations or unfair treatment of women workers by PMI-contracted farmers.”

If there are any issues, these are reported back to PMI and an action plan is put in place.

“In this region of Pakistan, women are generally not allowed to go out and work in public, and if they do, they must be veiled,” said Syed Muhammad Suleman Gul, PMI’s Manager for Social Sustainability in Pakistan.

“What we’re doing with the social mobilizer team is revolutionary, enabling these women to be out working in the world and making a difference. This project plays a key role in farm-by-farm monitoring, raising awareness of farmers’ families and collecting information related to them, water access, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), and female workers’ wages.”

Creating a future that is female

The team hopes to expand this project to 15 social mobilizers by the end of 2025. So far, data on over 3,000 farmers (100% of the farmers in the network) has been collected, and information on ALP and WASH practices have been shared. PMI’s goal is that 100 percent of its farmers will be aware of—and compliant with—the ALP Code.

Gul says this project has shone a spotlight on the crucial role that women play in farming, one that so often goes unacknowledged:

“What we’ve learned is that women have an equal responsibility on the farms that we visit and play a key role in tobacco production. This needs to be acknowledged.”

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