Annual Gender Report Africa RISING West Africa, East and Southern Africa Projects Gundula Fischer

Transcription

1 Annual Gender Report Africa RISING West Africa, East and Southern Africa Projects Gundula Fischer Produced by Published by International Institute of Tropical Agriculture International Institute of Tropical Agriculture January,

2 The Africa Research In Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation (Africa RISING) program comprises three research-for-development projects supported by the United States Agency for International Development as part of the U.S. government s Feed the Future initiative. Through action research and development partnerships, Africa RISING will create opportunities for smallholder farm households to move out of hunger and poverty through sustainably intensified farming systems that improve food, nutrition, and income security, particularly for women and children, and conserve or enhance the natural resource base. The three regional projects are led by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (in West Africa and East and Southern Africa) and the International Livestock Research Institute (in the Ethiopian Highlands). The International Food Policy Research Institute leads the program s monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment. This document is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License Cover photo: Vegetable vendor in Babati, Tanzania. Photo credit: Andreas Gramzow/World Vegetable Center This document was made possible with support from the American people delivered through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) as part of the US Government s Feed the Future Initiative. The contents are the responsibility of the producing organization and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of USAID or the U.S. Government.

3 Contents 1. Introduction Achievements in key result areas Capacity assessment and development Situation analysis Integrated systems improvement Integrated monitoring and evaluation Communications Continuing activities in

4 1. Introduction This report provides an overview of gender activities in Africa RISING s projects in East and Southern Africa (ESA) as well as in West Africa (WA) in It synthesizes the efforts various teams have made and thereby establishes Africa RISING s progress in terms of mainstreaming gender into its operations. It also supports the identification of themes to be further pursued or gaps to be filled. Wherever possible, links are given for more detailed reading or an indication where further information can be requested. The structure of the report follows Africa RISING s Program Framework for ( and its Gender Action Plan for 2015/2016 ( The former outlines situation analysis, integrated systems improvement, monitoring and evaluation and scaling as core of the research framework around which activities are to be organized. The first three of these key results areas (or core research outputs) were included in the gender action plan and supplemented by capacity development and communications. This report summarizes activities related to each of these areas and ends with an outlook on what will continue in Since October 2016 Africa RISING has embarked on its second project phase with a new strategic framework and new research questions in place ( Equity issues have received a prominent position as compared to the project s first phase. Future gender action plans and annual reports will reflect this stronger gender integration. 1

5 2. Achievements in key result areas The following subchapters are linked to the five key results areas of Africa RISING s gender activities as described in the Gender Action Plan 2015/2016. Achievements for each area will be briefly presented and (if possible) supplemented with links for more detailed reading. 2.1 Capacity assessment and development The development of gender capacity in all Africa RISING ESA and WA staff is vital for the attainment of the Program s overall objective of improving smallholder farmers livelihoods and in particular that of women and children. In 2016, the gender team conducted a broad gender capacity assessment with the following aims: 1. To raise the participants awareness of the important role of gender for the Program s success 2. To inform a gender capacity development plan 3. To provide the management of the two projects with information for strategic planning (e.g. which gender capacities to prioritize for training) 4. To establish a baseline, against which future-training efforts can be measured. The capacity assessment consisted of a survey (sent to all Africa RISING ESA and WA partners), a focus group discussion with the management and an evaluation of gender in the agricultural policies of four of the five countries in which the two IITA-led projects are implemented. The study investigated the individual level (survey), organizational level (management discussion) and environmental level of gender capacity. The results revealed among others a strong need for training in gender analysis (for researchers) as well as for raising awareness for gendertransformative approaches. Two actions resulted from the assessment s insights. First, the compilation of an annotated bibliography: It enables scientists to easily access well-selected gender in agriculture resources for independent learning. Second, the development of a gender-training manual based on Africa RISING s specific research approach (farming systems, action research): Work on the training concept, its contents and pilot evaluations will continue in Documents Fischer, G., Wittich, S. and Temu, E Gender capacity assessment report for Africa RISING West, East and Southern Africa projects. Ibadan, Nigeria: IITA. Fischer, G. and Wittich, S Annotated bibliography of gender in agriculture A reference resource for Africa RISING researchers. Ibadan, Nigeria: IITA. 2

6 2.2 Situation analysis A thorough investigation of the socio-economic situation in target communities should precede the development, adaptation and introduction of innovations. This includes an analysis of the potential interaction of new agricultural practices with labour, decision-making and access to resources as well as other gendered processes on the household and community level. A first activity in this area aimed at synthesizing gender-relevant data from Africa RISING baseline studies in Tanzania. The surveys were evaluated for their level of genderdisaggregation, methodology and the integration of gender analytical questions. An internal report was completed. It outlines avenues for more gender-sensitive baseline data collection within Africa RISING. A second activity consisted of examining gender issues in vegetable production and marketing in Africa RISING s sites in Babati and Kongwa/Kiteto in Tanzania. This was done under the lead of Africa RISING-NAFAKA, a USAID country mission-funded sub-project. A survey among 360 smallholder farmers and 82 vegetable traders produced the following results: No pronounced gender division in the production process could be found, with the exception of pest and disease management, input purchase and seed collection (all predominantly carried out by men). However, clear differences between male and female farmers emerged in the allocation of income from various crops and in marketing skills. Market performance of female producers of leafy vegetables was weaker than that of their male counterparts and of female traders. For women both in production and trade access to land constituted a major constraint. For further reading see Gramzow et al. (2016) below. An in-depth analysis is currently being prepared for publication. A third activity was located in Dedza and Ntcheu districts in Malawi. An MSc student (supervised by Africa RISING s nutritionist at Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resource Management) surveyed 291 households with children of 6-23 months of age and conducted eight focus group discussions. Key objective was to understand linkages between gender, household production and sale of legumes and child feeding. Legumes promoted by Africa RISING Malawi include groundnuts, soybeans, pigeon peas and cowpeas. More specifically the project investigated how men s and women s decision-making power as well as their access and control over resources relates to Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) indicators such as exclusive breastfeeding, dietary diversity, acceptable diets or meal frequency. The results show among others that women s control over productive resources has a significant positive correlation with their children s minimum dietary diversity and minimum meal frequency. This correlation was even stronger for girls than for boys. Similarly, a significant correlation emerged for women s ability to influence credit decisions and the minimum meal frequency and minimum acceptable diets for both girls and boys. 3

7 Documents Gramzow, A., Laizer, A., Fischer, G. and Joseph, P Africa RISING NAFAKA vegetable baseline survey report. Ibadan, Nigeria: IITA. sequence=1 Mulenga, H Gender roles in legume production, utilization and complementary feeding in Dedza and Ntcheu districts of Malawi. MSc thesis, Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources. 2.3 Integrated systems improvement In this core area social scientists (partly in cooperation with biophysicists) explore the interaction of innovations with gender relations in specific contexts. This enables researchers to determine if new practices lead to equitable results and if not, if adaptation or alternative solutions can be examined. In 2016, activities linked to this area focused on two themes: 1. The evaluation of how Africa RISING s sustainable intensification practices interact with gender relations in target communities in Ghana and Malawi 2. The examination of gender implications of the introduction of forage chopper machines in Africa RISING s action sites in Tanzania and Mali With respect to the first theme, Bedi (2016) explored the gender differential in the adoption of improved maize and soil fertility management in northern Ghana. His survey of 468 male and female farmers shows how adoption behaviour differs among women in female-headed and women in male-headed households. Variables that further influenced farmers behaviour were, among others, household size, land tenure, livestock ownership, education, age, group membership, plot distance from home, soil characteristics, agro-ecological zone, and sources of information. Conducted in the same target communities in Ghana, the qualitative study of Britwum and Akorsu (2016) set out to investigate four broad questions: What are the gender differences in the criteria farmers use to evaluate the suitability of new practices? What is the impact of gendered access and control over productive resources on the adoption? What gender considerations inform the adaptation of practices? What are the gender differences in access to information and learning about agricultural innovations? 4

8 Participants of stakeholder validation in Wa, Ghana Dakwa Photo credit: Michael Data were collected through 12 focus group discussions, 31 key informant interviews and three stakeholder validation sessions. The analytical framework of this study was informed by Naila Kabeer s social relations approach. Insights are accessible through the link below (Britwum and Akorsu, 2016). A qualitative evaluation (based on the same framework and guiding questions as Britwum and Akorsu) is currently being conducted in Africa RISING s intervention sites in Malawi with results available in A cross-regional comparison of findings is planned and shall inform further activities. Gender implications of the introduction of forage chopper machines in Tanzania and Mali constituted a second theme. In 2015, farmers groups were formed for the management and use of the machines in Babati (Tanzania). One year later, a team of social and livestock scientists examined the new processing practices through eight focus group discussions with male and female farmers. First findings show that the technology reduces women s labour burden and decreases the time needed for livestock feeding. However, women s access and use of the forage choppers is influenced by various factors - among others membership and gender dynamics in the farmers groups. Men tend to have greater access, which they in part justify by claiming lower technical skills of women. On the other hand, the benefits from improved feeding through the sale of milk and eggs have allowed some women - as they say - to become financially more independent. For further reading see Rugalabam et al. (2016). An in-depth analysis will be published in A similar investigation has been conducted in Africa RISING s target communities in Mali. However, data still await examination. 5

9 Preparing for focus group discussions on forage chopper machines in Babati, Tanzania Photo credit: Gregory Sikumba/ILRI Documents Bedi, S Exploring gender differential in the adoption of sustainable intensification practices in northern Ghana. MSc thesis, Wageningen University (available upon request: Bedi, S., Kotu, B., Gardebroek, C. and Frimpong, S Exploring gender differentials in adoption of sustainable intensification practices in northern Ghana. Vienna, Austria: Tropentag. Britwum, A. and Akorsu, A Qualitative gender evaluation of agricultural intensification practices in northern Ghana. Ibadan, Nigeria: IITA. Rugalabam, J., Malima, G., Wittich, S. and Fischer, G Gender implications of the introduction of forage processing machines in Babati, Tanzania. Preliminary results from focus group discussions with female and male farmers in July 2016 (unpublished report, available upon request: 6

10 2.4 Integrated monitoring and evaluation Monitoring and evaluation as continuous assessment processes include an in-depth analysis of interventions and their achievements and shortcomings. This shall support on-going learning processes (as demanded by Africa RISING s action research approach). For gender-sensitive M&E it matters (among others) to examine how different social groups (including farmers, researchers and other implementers) interacted during R4D activities and how gender relations as well as other social criteria came into play. In this core area a team of social scientists followed an intervention in Tanzania that promoted the application of improved maize seeds in combination with inorganic fertilizer and row planting. Over 50 semi-structured interviews with participating male and female farmers, implementers, district officers, and representatives of previous development interventions in the district revealed that the conventional focus of adoption studies on financial and knowledge constraints needs to be broadened to include labour requirements as well as historical experiences and social exchange networks of farmers that shape their decisions. The empirical study was supplemented by an extensive literature review. A publication is planned for Documents Fischer, G. and Wittich, S Social exchange networks and historical experiences: following a maize-fertilizer intervention in Babati, Tanzania (abstract). rical+experiences.pdf 2.5 Communications Gender-sensitive communication is not only an ethical aspiration and hallmark of professional journalism but can also contribute to development efforts. In 2016 Africa RISING focused its attention in this area on two activities: First, it developed guidelines for gender-sensitive success story writing. These contain reflection questions related to the gender-aware choice of sources, stories and visual material, the elimination of stereotypes and the use of a fair language. In addition, several Africa RISING success stories and photos are presented as examples and analyzed for achievements and missed opportunities. The document is meant to support all project partners involved in the production of communications material. A second activity is related to R4D platforms, which Africa RISING considers an important vehicle for implementing communications activities. A team of scientists working in Babati, Tanzania commissioned a stakeholder inventory of community based organizations in six wards. The objective was to find youth-specific and gender-aware groups to be potentially included in the formation of ward level platforms. However, the inventory may also be used to increase the participation of youth and female farmers in other R4D activities in the targeted wards. 7

11 Documents Fischer, G. and Odhong, J Seeing through the gender lens: Tips for capturing gender-sensitive success stories a resource for Africa RISING partners (in publication, available upon request: j.odhong@cgiar.org). Mgasa, D Stakeholder inventory of potential ward-level stakeholder groups for participation in the creation of ward-level R4D platforms in six wards of Babati district, Manyara region, Tanzania (internal report, available upon request: g.fischer@cgiar.org). 8

12 3. Continuing activities in 2017 The following activities (outlined above) will continue in 2017: Capacity assessment and development Development of a gender training manual including pilot trainings in Mali, Ghana, Malawi and Tanzania Situation Analysis Follow-up study of gender issues in vegetable production and marketing in Tanzania Integrated Systems Improvement Publication of evaluation study on sustainable intensification practices in Malawi including cross-regional comparison with Ghana Write-up of forage chopper machines examination in Tanzania and evaluation of data from Mali Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation Publication of follow-up research on maize-fertilizer intervention in Tanzania New activities will be outlined in the gender action plan 2017 after completion of work plans for Africa RISING East and Southern as well as West Africa. 9