1. WOMEN’S PROPERTY, MOBILITY AND DECISION-MAKING: EVIDENCE FROM RURAL KARNATAKA, INDIA Hema Swaminathan, Rahul Lahoti, Suchitra J. Y. Centre for Public Policy Indian Institute of Management Bangalore Annual Conference of the International Association for Feminist Economics Barcelona, June 27 2012

2. Motivation Women’s asset ownership has several welfare outcomes – Greater control over income – Improvements in prenatal care, children’s schooling status, nutrition – Bargaining power – Reduced experience of violence

3. Property - Decision making - Welfare Women’s asset ownership + Bargaining power (participation in decision- making) + Schooling status + Nutrition - Violence

4. Literature Allendorf (2007): Nepal DHS – land ownership enhances decision-making power pertaining to own health, household purchases, family visits Garikipati (2009): South Indian state of Andhra Pradesh – land + other productive assets leads to greater autonomy in household decision-making and labour markets Datta (2006): North Indian city of Chandigarh – joint titling policy enhances participation in household decision-making

5. Research Question What is the impact of women’s property ownership on their mobility and decision- making status?

6. Data and Methods Data from the Gender Asset Gap Project (2010- 11) – Karnataka Household Asset Survey (KHAS) – Rural area focus Asset ownership of individuals – Enables a true gendered analysis instead of having to rely on analysis based on sex of household head Valuation of assets

7. Asset Ownership Principal residence Agricultural land – Together account for 87% of gross physical worth in rural areas Two specifications: – Incidence of ownership – Share in household worth of these assets

8. Decision-making Whether to be employed (1=decide independently, 0 otherwise) Accessing health services (1=decide independently, 0 otherwise) Use of money (2=have money and decide independently, 1=have money and cannot decide independently, 0=no money)

9. Mobility – Market – Health facility – Outside the community Index combining the above – 1 if travel to all three alone, 0 otherwise

10. Empirical Specification

11. Endogeneity Concerns Instruments (?) Modes of asset acquisition – Use of assets acquired only exogenously by women: natal inheritance, inheritance upon death of spouse, government programmes, gifts – Assets acquired through modes that could be endogenous excluded: self-acquisition, natal inheritance of spouse

12. RESULTS

13. Incidence of Asset Ownership by Sex (%) Asset category All men All women Currently married women Currently single women Principal residence75241374 Agricultural land6013640 Total number of respondents2,2272,4501,994456

14. Asset Ownership and Mobility (%) Asset ownership Women allowed to travel alone to MarketHealth facility Other places outside community All three places Women in households that do not own land or residence 65635750 Non-owning women in households that own land or residence 6053 46 Women owners of either land or residence 8476 70 All women Asset ownership Women allowed to travel alone to MarketHealth facility Other places outside community All three places Women in households that do not own land or residence 59575042 Non-owning women in households that own land or residence 58515044 Women owners of either land or residence 81696664 Currently married women

15. Asset Ownership and Decision-making (%) All women Currently married women Asset ownership Women's ability to make decisions alone Whether to be employed Accessing health facility Spending money of their own Women in households that do not own land or residence 322948 Non-owning women in households that own land or residence 192046 Women owners of either land or residence 725473 Asset ownership Women's ability to make decisions alone Whether to be employed Accessing health facility Spending money of their own Women in households that do not own land or residence 201639 Non-owning women in households that own land or residence 131643 Women owners of either land or residence 363365

16. Exogenously Acquired Assets All women Currently married women Owning either house or land 156 Mean share in gross worth of house and land 72 Summary Statistics

17. Property Ownership, Mobility, and Decision-making: Marginal Effects All womenOwner of land or house Share in worth of house and land Mobility 0.092***0.091* Employment 0.171***0.140*** Access to health service 0.083***0.033 Have money and can decide 0.100***0.098* Currently married womenOwner of land or house Share in worth of house and land Mobility 0.134***0.299*** Employment 0.074**0.077* Access to health service 0.081**0.142*** Have money and can decide 0.0920.132

18. Predicted Probability for Wealth Shares, All Women

19. Predicted Probability for Wealth Shares, Currently Married Women

20. Other determinants – Incidence specification Variables All womenCurrently married women MobilityEmployment Health service Use of moneyMobilityEmployment Health service Use of money Occupation (base: homemaker) Wage employed(+) ***(+) **(+) *** (+) ** Self employed(+) ***(+) *(+) *** Casual worker(+) *** Contributing family worker(+) ***(+) **(+) ***(+) **(+) *(+) *** Education (base: illiterate) Secondary(+) * Higher secondary(+) * Diploma and above(+) ** (+) *** Age(+) *** (+) ** (+) *** (+) ** Number of observations2,4272,4252,4172,4221,9771,9761,9721,974

21. Other determinants – Incidence specification Variables All womenCurrently married women MobilityEmployment Health service Use of moneyMobilityEmployment Health service Use of money Currently married (base: currently single)(-) *** Spouse present(-) *(-)*** Islam (base: Hindu)(-) ***(-) **(-) *** Caste (base: Forward Caste and other) Backward and Other Backward Caste(-) **(-) * Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe(-) **(-) * No. adult men in hh(-) *** (-) * No. adult women in hh(-) ** Household wealth (base: bottom 20%) Middle 40%(-) ** (-) *** Top 40%(-) *** (-) *(-) *** (-) * Number of observations2,4272,4252,4172,4221,9771,9761,9721,974

22. Concluding thoughts Vast gender asset gap prevails in home and land ownership Women’s channels of asset acquisition overall are restricted Property ownership enhances their ability to travel alone and independently make decisions in areas important to their lives

23. Role of employment – any form of employment improves autonomy Education – not as strong an impact as expected Household economic status – negative impact

24. Thank You! For the country studies & comparative report see: http://genderassetgap.iimb.ernet.in Indian Institute of Management Bangalore Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore – 560 076, INDIA www.iimb.ernet.in