ROLE OF WOMEN IN ROOFTOP GARDEN MANAGEMENT: A CASE STUDY OF SOME SELECTED AREAS OF DHAKA CITY

Abstract

Executive summary Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital, is experiencing rapid urban growth, making it the world's fastest-growing mega city. To improve living conditions and create social and environmental benefits, rooftop gardening and natural habitats are becoming popular. Gardeners and agriculturists argue that residents want fresh vegetables and fruits without harmful chemicals. Specially, women are highly involved to make rooftop garden productive. For this, a research was conducted to assess the role of women in rooftop garden management and to explore the relation between the role of women in rooftop garden management and the selected characteristics of garden owners. The study, conducted from December 01, 2022 to Mid-February 2023, surveyed 80 respondents in Mohammadpur Thana, Dhaka using purposively selection methods focusing on the role of women in rooftop garden management. The Likert scale method was used to assess attitudes, with a range of very high to not at all. The weighted mean was calculated using the formula: Weighted mean = Ʃ (wi.xi) / Ʃ wi ; Where, wi = Respondents response in %; xi = Value assigned to very high to not at all. The study surveyed 18-60-year-old women focusing on rooftop gardeners. The majority had medium to high annual family income, with 40% having medium rooftop areas. The majority of garden owners were tenants, with 56% using their space for gardening. The majority had medium training exposure, with 45.09% having herb and 21.08% having tree plants. Women in rooftop gardening played a medium role, with 46.25% having low knowledge. The average knowledge score ranged from 0 to 18, with 46.25% having medium knowledge, 32.5% having low knowledge, and 21.5% having high knowledge. The study ranked respondents' problem-solving strategies, with costly management systems and water scarcity ranking the highest. The study shows that middle-aged women are more interested in rooftop gardening, with a majority (43.75%) performing a medium role, significantly influenced by factors like education, family size, income, training exposure, importance, and knowledge.