IN SUPPORT OF VULNERABLE GROUPS

Specific objectives of the study

  • Quantify the different types of rural workers in each of the six Central American countries to be studied.
  • Identify current poverty reduction and rural development policies (PR and RD) that affect rural workers in each country, and analyze how to make the tools used in PR and RD policies intended to improve the living conditions and incomes of those segments more effective.
  • Recommend ways in which future PR and RD policies can take measures to better address rural workers.
  • Analyze and expand on the data used by RUTA in the previous phase of the study, which addressed the types of populations that can be identified as rural workers.
  • Recommend criteria to be taken into consideration by governments and aid agencies, in order that the needs of rural workers are effectively included in PR and RD program and project design.

Study on rural workers in Central America

Policies with greatest impact on rural workers’ well being and income to be analyzed

RUTA will soon begin a detailed study to quantify the different types of rural workers in six Central American countries and, more importantly, analyze the primary policies that affect the well being of this group of workers.

The research will also probe into how these policies are incorporated into regional poverty reduction and rural development policies, including national and sector development plans, poverty reduction strategies and rural development strategies.

A view to vulnerable rural workers

The RUTA study will focus specifically on the poor rural workers of Central America. This group includes salaried rural workers involved in agricultural and non-agricultural activities; micro-producers that work as seasonal laborers when their land is not under cultivation; and unpaid family workers.

A preliminary study carried out by RUTA in three countries–-Guatemala, Nicaragua and Costa Rica–quantified the existence of 3.3 million rural workers in these countries, and nearly half a million rural micro-producers.

The fundamental interest in carrying out these studies is for national development policies and strategies to be directed toward these vulnerable groups, because past initiatives have been primarily focused on improving production conditions among rural populations with access to resources for production.

Consequently, these initiatives and policies have practically excluded landless rural workers, or those with only a “milpa;” rural households with a single parent, almost always a woman, as head of house; those too young and too old to participate in productive labor; the handicapped; and certain ethnic groups who may have productive resources, but whose social customs are not accepted by the rest of society.