The contribution of women to labor in African agriculture
is regularly quoted in the range of 60 to 80 percent. Using
individual-disaggregated, plot-level labor input data from
nationally representative household surveys across six SubSaharan
African countries, this study estimates the average
female labor share in crop production at 40 percent. It is
slightly above 50 percent in Malawi, Tanzania, and Uganda,
and substantially lower in Nigeria (37 percent), Ethiopia (29
percent), and Niger (24 percent). There are no systematic
differences across crops and activities, but female labor
shares tend to be higher in households where women own
a larger share of the land and when they are more educated.
Controlling for the gender and knowledge profile of the
respondents does not meaningfully change the predicted
female labor shares. The findings question prevailing assertions
regarding substantial gains in aggregate crop output
as a result of increasing female agricultural productivity.