Simulating the impact of livestock extension services on technology adoption, women’s empowerment, and farm income in Bangladesh

This study investigates the impact of livestock extension services (LES) on technology adoption, women’s empowerment, and farm income in Bangladesh. Inferential statistics and econometric models, namely principal component analysis, binary logistic regression, and simultaneous regression, are utilized. Data were collected from a sample of 906 livestock farmers in the southern Delta region. Results indicate that LES participant farmers scored 0.743 on the women’s empowerment in livestock index (WELI), while non-participant farmers scored 0.727. LES participant farmers had a 2.13 percent higher WELI score than non-participant farmers, and only 35.47% of women from livestock farming households were empowered (WELI ≥ 0.80). This suggests that LES has increased women’s empowerment by 2.13 percent. Additionally, LES is positively and significantly associated with household livestock farm income and technology adoption (p < 0.01). These findings underscore the importance of disseminating LES for technology adoption, increasing farm income, and reducing the gender gap.