Who decides what? Women’s decision-making after men’s out-migration in the mountainous communities of Pakistan

Hamayun Khan, Petra Dannecker, Zainab Khalid, Arif Alam, Ikram Shah and Muhammad Tanveer Jamal

Development in Practice, 2025, vol. 35, issue 5, 822-833

Abstract: Men’s out-migration and its consequent economic effects have received much attention in mainstream migration and development literature. However, its impact on the lives of the wives [of the migrants] and their decision-making power and ability is largely neglected, especially those living in restrictive joint family systems. Typically, in these situations, the women live in shared spaces within laws and enjoy little freedom to make decisions. Using semi structured interviews, the article aims to analyse the effect of husbands’ migration on women’s decision-making power in low and middle-income families of district Abbottabad in North-West Pakistan. Women’s decision-making is qualitatively assessed through three aspects of everyday life: household expenses, children’s education and family healthcare. The results show interesting shifts in power dynamics within the family once the husband migrates. Despite unequal power dynamics and substantial gender differences, in these particular circumstances the wives of the migrants become more independent in decision making.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/09614524.2025.2517666

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