COVID-19 induced lockdowns have had far reaching impacts on the rural sector, particularly on women farmers. These impacts have been exacerbated by lack of access to reliable and timely agriculture information. Using panel phone survey data from India and Nepal, we study how women's access to agricultural extension was impacted by the lockdowns and its effect on agricultural productivity. We find that women's already low access to formal extension was reduced further, leading to an increased reliance on informal social networks. In both countries, nearly 50% farmers reported negative impacts on productivity due to inaccessibility of information during the lockdown. In India, we find that access to formal extension is mediated by crop type, geographic location and caste identity. We discuss ways in which extension systems in India and Nepal can be made more inclusive and resilient to future crisis, including by adapting group and community-based approaches to post-pandemic best practices.

COVID-19 引发的封锁对农村地区产生了深远影响，尤其是对女性农民。由于无法获得可靠和及时的农业信息，这些影响加剧了。使用来自印度和尼泊尔的面板电话调查数据，我们研究了女性获得农业推广的机会如何受到封锁及其对农业生产力的影响。我们发现，女性获得正式推广的机会已经很低，进一步减少，导致对非正式社交网络的依赖增加。在这两个国家，近 50% 的农民报告称，由于封锁期间无法获取信息，生产率受到了负面影响。在印度，我们发现正式推广的获得受作物类型、地理位置和种姓身份的影响。