High economic growth has failed to improve the status or the participation of women in the labour market in developing countries. Taking into account the case of low labour force participation among women in rural Punjab, an analysis of existing policy prescriptions—of improving agricultural growth and crop diversification as a panacea to the problem—is revealed to be insufficient in improving the female labour force participation rate. In order for policy to successfully address these issues, it must consider the constraints imposed by gender norms.
