A powerful voice for change
Barely six years into her career as an agricultural researcher, Nepalese scientist Deepa Devkota is choosing to challenge gender inequity in profound and practical ways.
Not content with policies within her workplace - the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) -this dynamic Meryl Williams Fellow is determined to play her part in addressing persistent gender stereotypes and patriarchal attitudes. She has made it her mission to ensure that she and her female counterparts receive the support and facilities they need, from improved maternity leave provisions and vehicle allowances to on-site childcare.
It all starts, Deepa believes, with women having greater participation and input into decision-making.
In Nepal, the need for women to constantly juggle their professional and unpaid household work has historically rendered them less able to participate in training, workshops and conferences. Late notice of such events has not allowed them to make alternative childcare arrangements.
Deepa's solution to this dilemma was simple. She introduced a system in her research centre whereby upcoming opportunities were discussed regularly at staff meetings well in advance, to give female staff every chance to take part if they wished.
Convincing NARC of the need to build a childcare centre at its Kathmandu offices, where women comprise about 40% of the workforce across 20 research divisions, is another of Deepa's major achievements.
"Childcare is very challenging and expensive for female employees with young babies, and this can affect their productivity," Deepa says. "After nearly four years, NARC directors agreed to our request to construct a childcare centre, which was overwhelming news. Although construction has not yet begun, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, management has realised the necessity of childcare, which in itself is a positive sign."
Addressing inequities in the provision of transport and transport allowances paid to staff is another of Deepa's ambitions, and she has been an active advocate for NARC spending half its two-wheeler purchase budget on the scooters preferred by female staff. She also led a delegation to NARC's then executive director in 2017, urging him to provide the 90 days of maternity leave to women and 15 days of parental leave to men they were entitled to under Nepalese Government laws (NARC only allowed 60 days maternity leave and no parental leave).
"Men hardly ever take time off from work for family reasons," says Deepa. "However, when women use their maternity leave it can have negative implications and cause them to receive lower performance ratings."
Painful personal experience continues to motivate Deepa to work to improve conditions for the younger women following in her footsteps. Although she was raised in a family that sought to provide both genders with equal opportunities, she soon met biases and fundamental discrimination in her professional life.
"When I had my child, it was hard for me to have a work-motherhood balance and I had really wished for a childcare centre, where I could keep my baby during office hours and make frequent visits," Deepa says. "I could not focus on my work properly and my confidence and efficiency dropped.”
"I used to reject opportunities to participate in national and international-level conferences and training far from home because I didn't have sufficient time to manage my household responsibilities. This was the case for more senior females, too. This leads male seniors and managers to think that female staff are less likely to want to participate and it becomes part of the work culture. Then, if there are opportunities, only males are approached.
"Working women face unique challenges to maintain work-family balance, that may go unnoticed by male workers, but which can really hinder them in their professional career. In most cases, it is the woman who takes leave if a family member is ill or to attend important social gatherings or parent interviews at their child’s school. In the workplace this is referred to as unprofessional. Women do lots of unpaid work, which is the foundation of the global economy, and it must be valued."
This is especially important to Deepa in her research, where she has focused on how gender dynamics play out in the adoption of agricultural technology. Where possible, she has also sought to give female farmers representation in her studies, and she has worked as a gender specialist for the Farmers' Behaviour Insights Project, funded by ACIAR.
Deepa says her supportive family and many "sisters" - including colleagues in her research unit and fellow members of NARC's employees' association- inspire her to find the "courage to stand for anything, including gender equity" and to advocate for working environments friendly to women.
"They have encouraged me to talk openly about the issues and challenges we females are facing in work organisations," she says. "I have tried to set an example, but we have raised our voices for change together, to be heard. Now I wish to empower other women to raise their voices, too."
Deepa Devkota was awarded a prestigious Meryl Williams Fellowship in 2021. The Meryl Williams Fellowship is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and supports female agricultural researchers across the Indo-Pacific to improve their leadership and management skills.
The Fellowship contributes to more secure food systems by providing women in agricultural science with greater access to resources and decision making, building collaborative networks, supporting career advancement and driving institutional progress towards gender equity. You can learn more about the fellowship at https://www.geared.global/aboutmwf