Economic Policies for Female Labour and Food Nutrition Security: The Al-Ghab Region Case

Abstract

The Al-Ghab region in Syria is considered the typical resource rich poor area in a developing country. The possibility of activating economic growth goes through diversification in output, in order to stimulate the value-added generation and reduction of social and economic disparities between female and male labor employment. In this way also the problem of food insecurity is effectively addressed given its strong connection with the poverty level of households. The most suitable tool of analysis for addressing this complex target is provided by an extended multi-sector model developed on the basis of the SAM for the area of interest. In this paper, we develop a SAM for the Al-Ghab region and quantify the effects of selected policy scenarios in terms of economic diversification, female labor efficiency, and food nutrition security for the Al-Ghab region. This is done in order to identify the pillars of economic growth in the area.