The Interplay Between Livelihood Diversification, Gender Roles, and Food Security by Rural Women Farmers in Osun State Nigeria

This study investigated the interplay between livelihood diversification, gender roles and food security among rural women farmers in Osun state, Nigeria. A multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select 129 respondents for this study. Data were collected through an interview schedule and analyzed using inferential statistics (PPMC and linear regression). Results revealed that most women in the study area were informally educated, within productive age, and married with a relatively large family size, which necessitated livelihood diversification to ensure food security. The women diversified their livelihood with crop farming and trading as primary activities, although lack of access to agricultural inputs and credit facilities were key limiting factors to their efforts.Livelihood diversification significantly influenced food security among rural women. Therefore, the government and agricultural development agencies should train women in the study area to seize opportunities for livelihood diversification and facilitate access to agricultural inputs and credits.