The socioeconomic impact of health problems of working equids in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review on the female-gender perspectives
Authors: Bonsi Marta , Anderson Neil E. , Carder Gemma 
Published: October 2023

Working equids provide a crucial contribution to reduce the work burden on women and they protect the livelihoods and food security of female-headed households in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Nevertheless, they remain a neglected category within animal health policies and interventions, including those aimed at supporting women, that focus mostly on food production animals. This scoping review aims to assess the existing knowledge on the socioeconomic impact of health problems of working equids in LMICs under a female-gender perspective and to identify research gaps on the subject. The review intends to provide orientation for future research that is required to sensitise policymakers within governments and international organisations in LMICs on the importance of developing programmes for protecting working equids’ health and to incorporate such programmes within interventions supporting women’s empowerment.

Six relevant publications were identified through the search of five databases (CAB Abstracts, Web of Science Core Collection, BIOSIS, EMBASE and Scopus), backward citation searching and screening of indexes of proceedings and special issues retrieved from the database search. No limits were applied to the search strategy. Publications set in LMICs were considered eligible for the review if they included considerations regarding the female-gender perspective on the socioeconomic impact of infectious and non-infectious diseases of working equids or if female participants were included within the study population.

The review findings show that this subject is dramatically under-researched and only one article broadly studied the socioeconomic effects of health problems of working equids on women, while most of the publications included an exiguous number of female participants and made limited considerations on the matter. Considering the complexity of the subject, future research would benefit from the application of the One Health approach that represents an opportunity to clarify the link between equid health, women’s wellbeing and livelihoods, facilitating the translation of research into policy. Further research should focus on the socioeconomic impact of diseases with high morbidity and mortality, especially zoonoses. A participatory approach is recommended to ensure that the community viewpoint is acquired in detail, including indigenous women’s perspectives. The presence of female researchers can ensure that women’s voices are captured thoroughly.

One Health impact statement

By highlighting the implications of working equid diseases on women’s health and wellbeing, animal welfare and environmental health, this study demonstrates that future research on the subject would benefit from the application of a One Health approach. The engagement of a transdisciplinary team of veterinarians, epidemiologists, social scientists and public health specialists besides the incorporation of indigenous knowledge could effectively capture the multiplicity of consequences of the impaired health of working equids on women. This may facilitate the translation of research into policy, resulting potentially in the inclusion of women among beneficiaries of programmes targeting working equids, in an improved consideration of working equids within animal health interventions and within broader programmes targeting women, with long-term benefits on women’s health and wellbeing and animal welfare. Lastly, integrating females’ and indigenous people’s viewpoints in One Health research could enhance the identification of sustainable solutions to tackle the burden of working equid diseases.