Gendered effects of rainfall variability in Burkina Faso: an economy-wide CGE model-based analysis

Abstract Using a dynamic computable general equilibrium model that differentiates cropping activities and labour by sex and includes household home production, this study examines the effects of rainfall variability in Burkina Faso from both a macroeconomic perspective and a gender lens. The simulation of the annual rainfall pattern observed in the country over the past decade highlights its broad economic effects and confirms the greater sensitivity of female-led cropping activities. It also underscores the differential impacts on female and male workers in the labour market and within households, revealing the interactions between the non-market and market spheres of the economy when a rainfall shock occurs. Nevertheless, additional simulations suggest that promoting water management systems or more water-stress-resistant crop varieties could help mitigate the effects of rainfall variability and that targeted measures to support female farmers could effectively reduce their specific vulnerability.