Tag: women

Some of the participants at the “Gender dynamics in seed systems in sub-Saharan Africa” workshop held on December 2, 2019, in Nairobi, Kenya. (Photo: Kipenz Films/CIMMYT)

Making seed systems work for men and women

Written by Jérôme Bossuet on January 10, 2020. Posted in News.

One important pillar of Africa’s food security is ensuring that quality seeds are developed and delivered to the millions of smallholder farmers that feed the continent. Reaching the last mile with climate-resilient and disease-resistant seeds remains a challenge in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa. “In countries where we invested in seed systems initiatives, we have seen an upsurge in smallholder farm productivity,” said Joseph DeVries, the President of Seed Systems Group. “A story that is not adequately told is that of the important role of women along the seed value chain. In Kenya, 40% of owners of agrodealer shops are women. The farming sector would gain a lot with a stronger role for women in developing a gender-sensitive seed sector,” he noted.

DeVries was one of the keynote speakers at the “Gender dynamics in seed systems in sub-Saharan Africa” workshop organized by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) on December 2, 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meeting brought together researchers, development practitioners, donors, farmers’ representatives, farmers, seed companies and other private actors.

CIMMYT’s Gender and Development Specialist, Rahma Adam, observed that with the African seed sector being male-dominated, the patriarchal nature of the family and community systems make it harder for women to penetrate the sector easily. For instance, many women employed in the sector mostly dominate the low-paying jobs. Workshop participants agreed that while there are many opportunities for women in the sector, the barriers to entry are many.

Joseph DeVries, President of Seed Systems Group, addresses participants at the “Gender dynamics in seed systems in sub-Saharan Africa” workshop. (Photo: Kipenz Films/CIMMYT)

Acknowledging the gender gap in agriculture

“Decades of gender research have shown that where there is gender inequality, there is food insecurity,” remarked Jemimah Njuki, senior program specialist from the International Development Research Center (IDRC). The gender gap in agricultural productivity observed in sub-Saharan Africa — up to 30% in countries like Nigeria and Malawi — is often explained by unequal access to inputs and male labor for heavy operations such as land preparation, access to knowledge and capital.

Addressing such unequal access is not enough, according to Njuki. To switch to a truly gender-sensitive food system, “you need to address social norms and women’s agency and what they can do on their own.” Taking the example of financial services, women often find difficulties obtaining loans because banks ask for collateral like title deeds, which are typically in the name of the husband or a male in-law. Yet, women are very good at repaying their loans on time. Making finance institutions “womanable” as Njuki put it, would be good for the welfare of women and their family, hence good for business.

Jemimah Njuki, senior program officer at the International Development Research Center (IDRC), speaks at the workshop. (Photo: Kipenz Films/CIMMYT)

Is there such a thing as seed for women farmers?

Within a household, who has a say in buying new seeds? Do men and women farmers look for the same traits and attributes?

A study conducted in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda by Paswel Marenya, a senior agricultural economist at CIMMYT, revealed that in many cases, the man has a greater say in selecting new seed varieties. Other research shows that beyond grain yield, the characteristics of “a good variety” differ between men and women farmers. In the study, both genders mention what they were willing to pay as trade-off against yield. Women would favor a variety with a longer grain shelf-life (ability to store 3-4 months). Men preferred a variety that performs well with low fertilizer requirements. Equally, women farmers engaged in participatory varietal selections tended to provide more nuanced evaluation of varieties than men. Despite this evidence, seed companies do not often adapt their seed marketing strategy according to gender.

Making institutions and seed systems gender-sensitive

CIMMYT’s gender and development specialist Rahma Adam addresses participants at the “Gender dynamics in seed systems in sub-Saharan Africa” workshop. (Photo: Kipenz Films/CIMMYT)

Are there missed opportunities for the seed sector by being “gender-blind”? Rahma Adam believes “the current one-size-fits-all model does not work for many women farmers”. She advises seed companies to be more gender-sensitive when organizing seed marketing operations. Women tend to have less time to attend field demos, the major marketing tool for seed companies. Packaging may not be adapted to suit their more limited purchasing power.

There are good examples of women seed entrepreneurs that have established their niche and reach out to women farmers. Janey Leakey, Director of Leldet Seed Company in Nakuru, Kenya, is one such example. She markets small seed packs called Leldet bouquet, a mix of improved maize and legume seeds at the cost of a cup of tea, to enable women farmers test new varieties.

For the more informal sweet potato seed systems, many women farmers have been successfully engaged in lucrative vine multiplication, thanks to the use of women extensionists and women groups to teach appropriate storage techniques in drought-prone regions. “Such seed business can empower women within the household,” noted Jan Low, co-leader of the Sweetpotato for Profit and Health Initiative (SPHI) at the International Potato Center (CIP) and 2016 World Food Prize Laureate. A woman vine multiplier was able to negotiate with the husband for more land and water access to increase production.

Many other important actors in the public, private and development sectors have also been more deliberate in structuring some of their project or business implementation plans to include or benefit more women in the seed value chain. Among the players are CARE International, Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture, the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI), the Seed Trade Association of Kenya (STAK), SeedCo, the Agricultural Market Development Trust (AGMARK), World Vision, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which attended and participated very actively in this workshop.

Some of the plans entail helping more women to access information on climate change to understand their cropping seasons, contracting women farmers as seed out-growers, encouraging and supporting them to join forces to produce seed in group settings. Some of these actors also train women to enhance their entrepreneurial acumen, help them to access finance, obtain the appropriate labor and time-saving machinery, and acquire small seed packs.

Ultimately, designing a seed system that works for men and women requires a holistic approach, from building women’s agency, addressing norms and unequal access to resources. It requires time, dedication, financial and human resources, as well as capabilities and multi-stakeholder collaboration. “The main take-home message is that building a gender-sensitive seed system starts with us,” said Amanda Lanzarone, program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Rose Aufi shows some of her maize grain reserves. (Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT)

Rural women of eastern and southern Africa gain ground

Written by Shiela Chikulo on October 14, 2019. Posted in Photos.

Join us on this visual journey across Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe, where you will meet farmers who demonstrate every day what it means to be RURAL: Resilient, United, Reaping benefits, Adopter and Learner.

These women have adopted climate-smart practices in their production systems to ensure optimal yields while learning about drought-tolerant varieties of maize to counter the harsh effects of dry spells, heat stress, pests and diseases. These rural women are exemplary leaders in their communities, as evidenced by their successful farming practices and the food and income they secure for their families.

R is for Resilient

Lughano Mwangonde (center) holds her granddaughter and stands for a portrait with her daughters. (Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT)

Farming families in southern Africa are confronted with the adverse effects of climate change, particularly in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. A report by FEWS NET indicates negative impacts like declining yields, increase in grain prices during peak lean seasons and widespread food insecurity. However, Lughano Mwangonde from Malula, southern Malawi, has been practicing climate-smart agriculture since 2004 through a CIMMYT project, which has improved the food security of her family. In the midst of increasing climate variability, Lughano is cushioned against the harsh effects of droughts and heavy downpours through the practices she adopted. For example, she uses crop rotation of maize and legumes, like cowpea and pigeon pea.

Sequare Regassa sorts maize grain. (Photo: Simret Yasabu/CIMMYT)

Climate change affects men and women differently. Rural women farmers tend to be more susceptible to drought and the additional labor associated with household tasks. As such, building resilience against climate change is critical. For Sequare Regassa, in Ethiopia’s Oromia region, this means shifting to drought-tolerant maize varieties such as BH661, which have better performance and increased yield, even under heat and other stress conditions.

U is for United

Sequare Regassa (wearing green) and her family stand for a group photo at their farm. (Photo: Simret Yasabu/CIMMYT)

Sequare Regassa is the family’s breadwinner, looking after her four children and working closely with her extended family on their 8-hectare farm in Ethiopia’s Oromia region. “Getting a good maize harvest every year, even when it does not rain much, is important for my family’s welfare,” she says. Although her children are now grown and living with their own families, the family farm unites them all in producing adequate grain to feed themselves. Read more about how Regassa and other farmers are weatherproofing their livelihoods.

R is for Reaping benefits

Tabitha Kamau examines drought-tolerant KDV4 maize in her plot in the village of Kavilinguni, Machakos County, Kenya. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)

Rural women farmers are taking up improved drought-tolerant and high yielding varieties with early maturity thanks to participatory maize varietal selection. “If I am able to harvest in three and a half months or less, compared to four months or more for other varieties, I can sell some grain to neighbors still awaiting their harvest who want to feed their families,” says Tabitha Kamau. She is a smallholder farmer in Machakos County, Kenya, who plants drought-tolerant maize on her plot. Read about how farmers in her area are choosing the varieties that work best for them.

Rose Aufi explains how her family of seven children and three grandchildren are food-secure thanks to the climate-smart agriculture techniques she practices on her farm in Matandika, southern Malawi. She and her husband have obtained a good harvest since they started participating in a CIMMYT project and adopted climate-smart agricultural practices. Aufi says technologies such as mulching and crop rotation are there to simplify the workload in the field.

A is for Adopter

Alice Nasiyimu holds four large cobs of maize harvested at her family farm in Bungoma County, in western Kenya. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)

Dolly Muatha shows maize from her farm in Makueni County, eastern Kenya. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)

Dolly Muatha, a 49-year-old farmer with four children in Kenya’s Makueni County, has been growing SAWA drought-tolerant maize for three years. She has witnessed the performance of this variety in her demo plot. “It matures early and yields two to three beautiful cobs per plant” she says.

L is for Learner

Ruth Kanini Somba (left) stands for a portrait with her husband Alex and their 8-year-old son. (Photo: Jerome Bossuet/CIMMYT)

Ruth Kanini Somba adopted SAWA maize in 2017 after seeing a demonstration plot at Dolly Muatha’s farm. She points out that SAWA performs better than other varieties because of its early maturity and resistance to grey leaf spot and weevils. The drought-tolerant attribute of the SAWA maize also makes the maize crop cope well when rainfall is erratic.

Agnes Nthambi (left) and other farmers evaluate maize varieties developed through CIMMYT’s Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa (STMA) project. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)

Improved agricultural techniques, such as optimum spacing, enables farmers such as Agnes Nthambi to get better crops. This farmer from Kenya’s Machakos County hosted a demonstration plot she and other farmers in her area were able to learn new growing techniques. “On this trial, I learned that spacing was about two times shorter than we are generally used to. Even with the more constricted spacing, the maize has performed much better than what we are used to seeing,” Nthambi explained.

Pigeon peas are a delicacy in Lemu and Mary is happy to have sufficient stock at home. (Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT)

Pulses, cobs and a healthy soil prove the success of a rural innovator

Written by Shiela Chikulo on October 14, 2019. Posted in Features. 2 Comments on Pulses, cobs and a healthy soil prove the success of a rural innovator

Mary Twaya is an exemplary farmer in Lemu, a rural drought-prone community in southern Malawi, near Lake Malombe. On her one-hectare farm she grows cotton, maize, and legumes like groundnut and cowpea, which she just picked from her fields. Since agriculture is Twaya’s sole livelihood, it is important for her to get good harvests, so she can support her three children and her elderly mother. She is the only breadwinner since her husband left to sell coffee in the city and never returned.

Agriculture is critically important to the economy and social fabric of Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the World. Up to 84% of Malawian households own or cultivate land. Yet, gender disparities mean that farmland managed by women are on average 25% less productive than men. Constraints include limited access to inputs and opportunities for capacity building in farming.

Mary Twaya stands by her field during the 2018/19 season. (Photo: Christian Thierfelder/CIMMYT)

Climate change may worsen this gender gap. Research from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) shows that there are multidimensional benefits for women farmers to switch to climate-smart agriculture practices, such as planting drought-tolerant maize varieties and conservation agriculture with no tillage, soil cover and crop diversification.

Twaya was part of a CIMMYT project that brought climate-smart agriculture practices to smallholder farmers in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

She was enthusiastic about adopting climate-smart agriculture practices and conservation agriculture strategies in her plot. “I have always considered myself an active farmer, and when my husband left, I continued in the project around 2007 as part of the six lead ‘mother farmers’ with about 30 more ‘baby farmers’ learning through our field trials,” Twaya explained.

“We worked in Lemu since 2007 with Patrick Stanford, a very active and dedicated extension officer who introduced conservation agriculture to the village,” said CIMMYT agronomist Christian Thierfelder. “Farmers highlighted declining yields. The Lemu community was keen to transform their farming system, from conventional ridge tillage to more sustainable and climate-adapted cropping systems.” This was an ideal breeding ground for new ideas and the development of climate-smart solutions, according to Thierfelder.

Mulching, spacing and legume diversification

Showing her demonstration plot, which covers a third of her farm, Twaya highlights some of the climate-smart practices she adopted.

“Mulching was an entirely new concept to me. I noticed that it helps with moisture retention allowing my crops to survive for longer during the periods of dry spells. Compared to the crops without mulching, one could easily tell the difference in the health of the crop.”

“Thanks to mulching and no tillage, a beneficial soil structure is developed over time that enables more sustained water infiltration into the soil’’, explained Thierfelder. “Another advantage of mulching is that it controls the presence of weeds because the mulch smothers weeds unlike in conventional systems where the soil is bare.”

Research shows that conservation agriculture practices like mulching, combined with direct seeding and improved weed control practices, can reduce an average of 25-45 labor days per hectare for women and children in manual farming systems in eastern Zambia and Malawi. This time could be used more productively at the market, at home or in other income-generating activities.

A plate full of pigeon peas harvested from Mary’s plot in Lemu, Malawi. Pigeon pea grain has a high protein content of 21-25%, making it a valuable food for many families who cannot afford dairy and meat. (Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT)

After 12 years of practicing conservation agriculture, Twaya confirms that she does not spend too much time in the field because she just uproots the weeds with no need for using a hoe. This makes the weeding task less laborious and allows her to spend her time on other chores such as fetching water, washing laundry or cleaning her homestead. “I have time to also go to the village banking and loan savings club to meet with others”.

Adopting optimum plant density, instead of throwing in three seeds in each planting hole was another transformational change. The “Sasakawa spacing” — where maize seeds are planted 25 centimeters apart in rows spaced every 75 centimeters — saves seed and boosts yields, as each plant receives adequate fertilizer, light and water without competing with the other seeds. This practice was introduced in Malawi in the year 2000 by Sasakawa Global.

Twaya pays more attention to the benefits of planting nitrogen-fixing crops alongside her maize, as she learned that “through crop rotation, legumes like pigeon pea improve the nutrition of my soil.” In the past she threw pigeon pea seeds loosely over her maize field and let it grow without any order, but now she practices a “double-up legume system,” where groundnut and pigeon pea are cropped at the same time. Pigeon peas develop slowly, so they can grow for three months without competition after groundnut is harvested. This system was introduced by the Africa RISING project, funded by USAID.

Groundnuts and pigeon peas grow under the double-up legume system in Mary Twaya’s conservation agriculture plot. (Photo: Christian Thierfelder/CIMMYT)

A mother farmer shows the way

Switching to climate-smart agriculture requires a long-term commitment and knowledge. Some farmers may resist to the changes because they initially find it new and tedious but, like Twaya observed, “it may be because they have not given themselves enough time to see the long-term benefits of some of these practices.”

With all these innovations — introduced in her farm over the years with the support of CIMMYT and the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development of Malawi — Twaya reaped important economic and social benefits.

When Twaya rotates maize and pigeon pea, the maize stalks are healthy and the cobs are big, giving her higher yields. Passing-by neighbors will often exclaim ‘‘Is this your maize?’’ because they can tell it looks much more vigorous and healthier than what they see in other fields.

For the last season, Twaya harvested 15 bags of 50kg of maize from her demo plot, the equivalent of five tons per hectare. In addition to her pigeon pea and groundnut crops, she was able to feed her family well and earned enough to renovate her family home this year.

This new way of managing her fields has gained Twaya more respect and has improved her status in the community.

Through surplus sales of maize grain, pigeon pea and groundnuts over the past 12 years, Mary has generated enough income to build a new home. Nearing completion, she has purchased iron sheets for roofing this house by the end of 2019. (Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT)

New publications: Exploring how women seize control of wheat–maize technologies in Bangladesh

Written by Matthew O'Leary on September 4, 2019. Posted in Publications.

A new study published in the Canadian Journal of Development Studies shows how some of Bangladesh’s indigenous women are overcoming social norms and institutional biases to gain direct access to maize and wheat agricultural innovations through developing women-led agricultural organizations, which benefit low-income Muslim women members as well.

Agriculture is important to Bangladesh’s economy and employs a large percentage of the male and female population as farmers, hired labor, and decision-makers. Bangladesh also has a positive policy commitment to gender equality. The UN Sustainable Development Goals are embedded into the country’s national growth plans, including a strong commitment to Goal 5, Gender Equality, and Goal 10, Reduced Inequalities.

However, this new study shows that agricultural innovation programs are primarily directed at middle-income male farmers. Institutional biases in agricultural partners — extension officers, research organizations, policymakers, private sector partners and others — can hamper indigenous peoples and women from participating in wheat–maize innovation processes, as they rarely meet the requisite criteria: sufficient land and social capital. In addition, their participation in markets varies according to their socioeconomic location in society.

Drawing on GENNOVATE case studies, the authors provide insights into how overlapping layers of disadvantage are being challenged in one community in northern Bangladesh.

Indigenous Santal women in the community are active in agriculture, both in the field and in decision-making, but are often marginalized by agricultural partners. Through mobilizing themselves organizationally into a woman-led agricultural organization, they have provided a forum for the delivery of technical training. This process has encouraged low-income Muslim women — who work in the field but are also marginalized by agricultural partners — to join the organization and benefit from training as well.

The findings provide insights into how agricultural research partners can work to strengthen the contribution and voices of the women who have long experienced differing forms of marginalization and to support their efforts to secure technical training.

The data used in this article is derived from GENNOVATE (Enabling Gender Equality in Agricultural and Environmental Innovation), a global research initiative supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This is a cross-CGIAR initiative examining how interactions between gender norms, agency and other contextual factors shape access to, adoption of and benefits from agricultural innovations in rural communities worldwide.

Read the full paper:
Leaving no one behind: how women seize control of wheat–maize technologies in Bangladesh.

See more recent publications by CIMMYT researchers:

Efficient curation of genebanks using next generation sequencing reveals substantial duplication of germplasm accessions. 2019. Narinder Singh, Shuangye Wu, Raupp, W.J., Sunish Sehgal, Sanu Arora, Vijay Tiwari, Vikram, P., Sukhwinder-Singh, Chhuneja Parveen, Gill, B.S., Poland, J. In: Nature Scientific reports v. 9, art. 650.
Soil zinc is associated with serum zinc but not with linear growth of children in Ethiopia. 2019. Tessema, M., De Groote, H., Brouwer, I.D., Feskens, E.J.M., Belachew, T., Zerfu, D., Belay, A., Demelash,Yoseph, Gunaratna, N.S. In: Nutrients v. 11, no. 2, art. 221.
Assessing adoption potential in a risky environment: the case of perennial pigeonpea. 2019. Grabowski, P., Schmitt Olabisi, L., Jelili Adebiyi, Waldman, K., Richardson, R., Rusinamhodzi, L., Snapp, S.S. In: Agricultural Systems v. 171, p. 89-99.
Untangling gender differentiated food security gaps in Bhutan: An application of exogenous switching treatment regression. 2019. Aryal, J.P., Mottaleb, K.A., Rahut, D.B. In: Review of Development Economics v. 23, no. 2, p. 782-802.
Genetic diversity and population structure of synthetic hexaploid-derived wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) accessions. 2019. Gordon, E., Kaviani, M., Kagale, S., Payne, T.S., Navabi, A. In: Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution v. 66, no. 2, p. 335-348.
Molecular characterisation of maize introgressed inbred lines bred in different environments. 2019. Lennin Musundire, Derera, J., Shorai Dari, Tongoona, P., Cairns, J.E. In: Euphytica v. 215, art. 46.
A benchmarking between deep learning, support vector machine and bayesian threshold best linear unbiased prediction for predicting ordinal traits in plant breeding. 2019. Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Martin-Vallejo, J., Crossa, J., Gianola, D., Hernández Suárez, C.M., Montesinos-Lopez, A., Juliana, P., Singh, R.P. In: G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics v. 9, no. 2, p. 601-618.
Farmers’ preferences for high-input agriculture supported by site-specific extension services : evidence from a choice experiment in Nigeria. 2019. Oyakhilomen Oyinbo, Chamberlin, J., Vanlauwe, B., Liesbet Vranken, Kamara, A. Y., Craufurd, P., Maertens, M., In: Agricultural Systems v. 173, p. 12-26.
Effects of three in-field water harvesting technologies on soil water content and maize yields in a semi-arid region of Zimbabwe. 2019. Nyagumbo, I., Nyamadzawo, G., Connie Madembo. In: Agricultural Water Management v. 216 p. 206-213.
Genomic selection for winter survival ability among a diverse collection of facultative and winter wheat genotypes. 2019. Beil, C. T., Anderson, V.A., Morgounov, A.I., Haley, S. D. In: Molecular Breeding v. 30, art. 29.
Can minimum tillage enhance productivity? Evidence from smallholder farmers in Kenya. 2019. Jena, P.R. In: Journal of Cleaner Production v. 218, p. 465-475.
12. Sub-surface drip fertigation with conservation agriculture in a rice-wheat system : a breakthrough for addressing water and nitrogen use efficiency. 2019. Sidhu, H.S., Jat, M.L., Singh, Y., Ravneet Kaur Sidhu, Gupta, N., Singh, P., Pankaj Singh, Jat, H.S., Gerard, B. In: Agricultural Water Management v. 216, p. 273-283.
Genetic dissection of heat and drought stress QTLs in phenology-controlled synthetic-derived recombinant inbred lines in spring wheat. 2019. Caiyun Lu, Sukumaran, S., Claverie, E., Sansaloni, C.P., Dreisigacker, S., Reynolds, M.P. In: Molecular Breeding v. 39, art. 34.
Genetic analysis of cob resistance to F. verticillioides: another step towards the protection of maize from ear rot. 2019. Cong Mu, Jingyang Gao, Zijian Zhou, Zhao Wang, Xiaodong Sun, Zhang, X, Huafang Dong, Yanan Han, Xiaopeng Li, Yabin Wu, Yunxia Song, Peipei Ma, Chaopei Dong, Jiafa Chen, Jianyu Wu. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 4, p. 1049-1059.
Two large-effect QTLs, Ma and Ma3, determine genetic potential for acidity in apple fruit : breeding insights from a multi-family study. 2019. Verma, S., Evans, K., Guan, Y., Luby, J.J., Rosyara, U., Howard, N.P., Bassil, N.V., van de Weg, W.E., Peace, C.P. In: Tree Genetics and Genomes v. 15, no. 2, art. 18.
Yielding to the image: how phenotyping reproductive growth can assist crop improvement and production. 2019. Dreccer, M.F., Molero, G., Rivera Amado, A.C., Carus John-Bejai, Wilson Zoe. In: Plant Science v. 282, p. 73-82.
Development of multiple SNP marker panels affordable to breeders through genotyping by target sequencing (GBTS) in maize. 2019. Zifeng Guo, Hongwu Wang, Jiajun Tao, Yonghong Ren, Cheng Xu, Kunsheng Wu, Cheng Zou, Jianan Zhang, Yunbi Xu. In: Molecular Breeding v. 39, art. 37.
Agriculturally productive yet biodiverse: human benefits and conservation values along a forest-agriculture gradient in Southern Ethiopia. 2019. Baudron, F., Schultner, J., Duriaux, J., Gergel, S., Sunderland, T. In: Landscape Ecology v. 34, no. 2, p. 341–356.
Trends in regional and chronological diversity of maize (zea mays l.) germplasm in Pakistan. 2019. Maqbool, M.A.| Aslam, M. | Issa, A.B. | Babar Manzoor Atta. In: Pakistan Journal of Botany v. 51, no. 2, p. 1-13.
Do metabolic changes underpin physiological responses to water limitation in alfalfa (Medicago sativa) plants during a regrowth period? 2019. Molero, G., Tcherkez, G., Roca, R., Mauve, C., Cabrera-Bosquet, L., Araus, J.L., Nogués, S., Aranjuelo, I. In: Agricultural Water Management v. 212, p. 1-11.

Women and youth find profitable business pathways through small-scale mechanization

Written by Shiela Chikulo on June 28, 2019. Posted in News.

Mechanization demonstration during a field visit to Makonde, Zimbabwe, as part of the FACASI Phase 2 final review meeting. Photo: Shiela Chikulo/CIMMYT

African farmers have ten times fewer mechanized tools per farm area than farmers in other developing regions, according to the Malabo Panel’s mechanization report. For the past six years, the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) funded Farm Mechanization and Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification (FACASI) project has explored ways to address poor access to appropriate mechanization solutions, which is costing smallholders a lot in lost productivity.

“One of the key outcomes of the FACASI initiative has been to present women and youth with pathways into diverse profitable income generating businesses using small mechanization,” says Alice Woodhead, professor in rural economies at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia. Woodhead shared her impressions following a field visit to Makonde, in northwestern Zimbabwe, as part of the FACASI Phase 2 final review meeting held in May. Almost 40 public and private sector project partners from Zimbabwe and Ethiopia attended the event in Harare as well as ACIAR representatives.

Farm machinery: women entrepreneurs thrive on two wheels

Agatha Dzvengwe and Marianne Jaji shared their business experience as two-wheel tractor (2WT) service providers in Makonde. The 2WT, which can be used for multiple purposes from transporting, planting, fertilizer application and shelling, allows them to plant efficiently and provides additional income through hiring out their tractors to neighboring farmers. For instance, during the 2018/19 season, Dzvengwe used the Fitarelli planter to plant ten hectares of maize, two hectares of sugar beans and five hectares of soybeans. Because of the planter’s efficiency, she had enough extra time to hire out planting services to neighboring farmers, earning $100 for one hectare of maize, and double for the planting of soybean or sugar beans.

Marianne Jaji provides 2WT based shelling services, which she says generates steady income for her household, enabling her to contribute to important household decisions. Despite the 2018/19 season being characterized by drought, Jaji was confident that she could still earn a decent income from neighboring farmers engaging the 2WT harvesting services. Other women service providers reported relief from labor drudgery and empowerment. “We have been freed from the burden of toiling in the field. Now that I own a 2WT, the society respects me more.”

“In a business dominated by men, women like Agatha and Marianne can become successful entrepreneurs, providing crucial farming services for the community such as shelling, planting and transport,” explains Bertha Tandayi, a FACASI research assistant at the University of Zimbabwe, where she studies the adoption of 2WT based technologies by women entrepreneurs in Makonde and Nyanga districts.

Small-scale mechanization has higher adoption rates in areas where the most profitable services are provided, such as shelling. The benefits for entrepreneurs and the community are visible and include the creation of employment, home renovations, asset accumulation, livestock rearing, borehole drilling and the purchasing of agricultural inputs.

Sustainable shelling enterprise for Mwanga youth group

Since establishing their enterprise in 2016 following training under the FACASI project, the Mwanga youth group is still going strong in Makonde. During a live demonstration of the medium sized sheller, Masimba Mawire remarked that the shelling business has provided steady and reliable income for the group. Brothers Shepherd and Pinnot Karwizi added that the group has gained from further training in maintenance, facilitated through the FACASI project. “It is evident that the youths have found a way to work as a business team, giving them purpose and to realize aspirations of being a business owner and not just an employee,” said Woodhead.

Of the services provided through the 2WT technologies, shelling services are in greatest demand, as this simple technology significantly reduces the time spent on shelling maize cobs. A medium sized sheller, for example, produces between five and six tons of shelled maize grain per day, over ten times more than manual shelling.

The combined benefits of income, reduced drudgery and high efficiency of the 2WT based technologies have transformed the lives of the youths and women services providers. Confident in their future, they plan to expand their business portfolios, looking at value addition options such as post-harvest processing of other crops.

In Odisha and Bihar, CSISA has leveraged the social capital of women's self-help groups formed by the government and other civil society partners and which offer entry points for training and social mobilization, as well as access to credit. (Photo: CSISA)

Support groups open women’s access to farm technologies in northeast India

Written by on March 12, 2019. Posted in Features.

Self-help groups in Bihar, India, are putting thousands of rural women in touch with agricultural innovations, including mechanization and sustainable intensification, that save time, money, and critical resources such as soil and water, benefiting households and the environment.

The Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society, locally known as Jeevika, has partnered with the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), to train women’s self-help groups and other stakeholders in practices such as zero tillage, early sowing of wheat, direct-seeded rice and community nurseries.

Through their efforts to date, more than 35,000 households are planting wheat earlier than was customary, with the advantage that the crop fully fills its grain before the hot weather of late spring. In addition, some 18,000 households are using zero tillage, in which they sow wheat directly into unplowed fields and residues, a practice that improves soil quality and saves water, among other benefits. As many as 5,000 households have tested non-flooded, direct-seeded rice cultivation during 2018-19, which also saves water and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

An autonomous body under the Bihar Department of Rural Development, Jeevika is also helping women to obtain specialized equipment for zero tillage and for the mechanized transplanting of rice seedlings into paddies, which reduces women’s hard labor of hand transplanting.

“Mechanization is helping us manage our costs and judiciously use our time in farming,” says Rekha Devi, a woman farmer member of Jeevika Gulab self-help group of Beniwal Village, Jamui District. “We have learned many new techniques through our self-help group.”

With more than 100 million inhabitants and over 1,000 persons per square kilometer, Bihar is India’s most densely-populated state. Nearly 90 percent of its people live in rural areas and agriculture is the main occupation. Women in Bihar play key roles in agriculture, weeding, harvesting, threshing, and milling crops, in addition to their household chores and bearing and caring for children, but they often lack access to training, vital information, or strategic technology.

Like all farmers in South Asia, they also face risks from rising temperatures, variable rainfall, resource degradation, and financial constraints.

Jeevika has formed more than 700,000 self-help groups in Bihar, mobilizing nearly 8.4 million poor households, 25,000 village organizations, and 318 cluster-level federations in all 38 districts of Bihar.

The organization also fosters access for women to “custom-hiring” businesses, which own the specialized implement for practices such as zero tillage and will sow or perform other mechanized services for farmers at a cost. “Custom hiring centers help farmers save time in sowing, harvesting and threshing,” said Anil Kumar, Program Manager, Jeevika.

The staff training, knowledge and tools shared by CSISA have been immensely helpful in strengthening the capacity of women farmers, according to D. Balamurugan, CEO of Jeevika. “We aim to further strengthen our partnership with CSISA and accelerate our work with women farmers, improving their productivity while saving their time and costs,” Balamurugan said.

CSISA is implemented jointly by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). It is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

A farmer buys seed at a Meru seed shop in Arusha, Tanzania. (Photo: KipenzFilms/CIMMYT)

The missing seed market

Written by on February 27, 2019. Posted in News.

*Workers at Mgommera seed firm in Malawi sort out seed. (Photo: KipenzFilms/CIMMYT)*

In Ethiopia, a World Bank study found that female farm managers produce 23 percent less yield per hectare compared to their male counterparts. This difference is explained partly by unequal access to information on improved seed varieties and what best agricultural practices to use. Despite half the farming workforce being women, the seed companies do not typically adapt their seed marketing strategy according to gender.

The “Gender-Responsive Approaches for the Promotion of Improved Maize Seed in Africa” guidebook, developed by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), is filling this gap. Designed for seed companies, extension workers and development organizations, it explains how best to package information about improved seed and farming technologies for men and women, with the goal of increasing adoption rates.

“Since seeing is believing, the field demonstrations approach allows farmers to witness firsthand how well improved seed varieties perform on their farms right from planting to harvesting, compared to old or other varieties,” said Rahma Adam, gender and development specialist at CIMMYT. “But too often, not enough care is given in the selection of women as lead farmers. This minimizes opportunities for reaching out to more women.”

Based on research, the guidebook recommends that half of the demonstration plots should be managed by women. In fact, the panel of lead farmers should be diverse, representing different age, socioeconomic status and ethnic groups, among others. Indeed, an understanding and importance of the various agronomic practices from the time of planting, weed control or fertilizer application would vary across gender, age and socioeconomic groups.

“Given the turnover of seed varieties due to genetic improvements, men and women extension workers need to keep abreast not only of new technologies, but also of new ways of fostering awareness and encouraging adoption, for instance using digital platforms for faster and cheaper outreach,” the guidebook concludes.

Tools for field days and budgeting

A complementary handbook, “Gender-responsive tools for demos and field days data collection”, is under preparation. It will guide seed companies and extension workers on how to consider the diversity of the public attending farmer field days.

Another toolkit, “Gender-Responsive Budgeting Tool for the Promotion of Improved Maize Seed in Africa”, proposes how to efficiently allocate resources to reach out to targeted farmers to promote new varieties and farming practices. If, for instance, women farmers do not know as much as men farmers about certain improved maize varieties, then the best approach would be to direct the resources towards promoting the seed varieties among the women. Better still, since women are involved in making decisions about purchasing improved seeds in both male-headed and female-headed households, it is logical to allocate more resources targeting women farmers. An effective strategy would be to allocate a portion of the budget to field days, farm demonstrations, distribution of small seed packs, informational leaflets, showcase videos and disseminate radio messages, among others. “In fact, local radio is quite effective in informing farmers about upcoming field days or farm demonstration days,” said Simon Kiio, a field officer at Dryland Seed Ltd, a Kenyan seed company which distributes drought-tolerant SAWA and VIGA maize hybrids, among others, across Kenya.

“Whenever we make announcements on local radio to inform farmers about dates and locations for demo farm activities, we usually get more women attending than men. These women act as good marketing ambassadors for our products within their networks or groups,” Kiio explained.

Ultimately, by building gender-sensitive and cost-effective seed promotion programs, seed companies would generate more seed sales of improved maize varieties: seeds that are more tolerant to major stresses, better adapted to poor soils, and yielding more than the local, older varieties on the market.

The Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa (STMA) project seeks to develop maize cultivars with tolerance and resistance to multiple stresses for farmers, and support local seed companies to produce seed of these cultivars on a large scale. STMA aims to develop a new generation of over 70 improved stress tolerant maize varieties, and facilitate production and use of over 54,000 metric tons of certified seed.

The STMA project is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and USAID.

CIMMYT scientist Gemma Molero speaks at the 9th International Wheat Congress in Sydney, Australia, in 2015. (Photo: Julie Mollins/CIMMYT)

Meet the role models for the next generation of women and girls in science

Written by Emma Orchardson on February 8, 2019. Posted in Features.

“We need to encourage and support girls and women to achieve their full potential as scientific researchers and innovators,” says UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres. And he is right. Bridging the gender gap in science is central to achieving sustainable development goals and fulfilling the promises of the 2030 Agenda.

Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. While in recent years the global community has increased its efforts to engage women and girls in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), they remain staggeringly underrepresented in these fields. According to UNESCO, less than 30 percent of the world’s researchers are women, and only one in three female students in higher education selects STEM subjects.

“Science is male-dominated,” agrees CIMMYT wheat physiologist Gemma Molero. “It’s challenging being a woman and being young — conditions over which we have no control but which can somehow blind peers to our scientific knowledge and capacity.”

*Samjhana Khanal surveys heat-tolerant maize varieties in Ludhiana, India, during a field day at the 13th Asian Maize Conference. (Photo: Manjit Singh/Punjab Agricultural University)*

Investing in the science education for women and girls is a key part of changing this reality. Samjhana Khanal, a Nepali agricultural graduate, social entrepreneur and recipient of a 2018 MAIZE-Asia Youth Innovator Award testifies to this. She cites support from her family as a driving factor in allowing her to pursue her education, particularly her mother, who “despite having no education, not being able to read or write a single word, dreamed of having a scientist daughter.”

Enhancing the visibility of established female scientists who can serve as role models for younger generations is equally important.

“One of the most important factors that register subconsciously when undergraduates consider careers is what the person at the front of the room looks like,” claims the Association for Women in Science, “and women and underrepresented minorities visibly perceive their low numbers in fields like engineering and physical sciences.”

*Visiting researcher Fazleen Abdul Fatah is studying the the growing importance of maize and wheat in emerging economies.*

Fazleen Abdul Fatah is a senior lecturer in agricultural economics, trade and policy at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UITM), Malaysia, who recently spent three months as a visiting researcher based at CIMMYT’s global headquarters in Mexico. She acknowledges the importance of raising the visibility of minority female scientists who can serve as role models for young girls by demonstrating that careers in STEM are attainable.

“I had an amazing professor during my undergraduate degree who really inspired me to move forward in the field,” says Abdul Fatah. “She was a wonderful example of how to do great maths, lead successful national and international projects, work in the STEM field, and be a mom.”

With support from CIMMYT, Molero, Khanal and Abdul Fatah are helping pave the way for the next generation of female scientists. Whether working on crop physiology, nutrient management or food consumption patterns, their careers serve as an inspiration for young and early career researchers around the world.

Read their stories here:

Breaking Ground: Gemma Molero sheds light on wheat photosynthesis

Let’s make hunger history: Samjhana Khanal

Visiting researcher from Malaysia studies growing importance of maize and wheat in the country

Explore CIMMYT’s job openings and training and research opportunities.

Maize and wheat Super Women campaign highlights diversity

Written by on March 2, 2015. Posted in Features. 1 Comment on Maize and wheat Super Women campaign highlights diversity

EL BATAN, Mexico (CIMMYT) – A social media crowd sourcing campaign initiated to celebrate the achievements of women has led to more than a dozen published blog story contributions about women in the maize and wheat sectors.

Each year, International Women’s Day gives the world a chance to inspire women and celebrate their achievements. This year, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) put out a call asking for blog contributions from the social media community.

CIMMYT asked readers to submit stories about women who have made a difference in the maize and wheat sectors, including women involved in conservation agriculture, genetic resources, research, technology and related socio-economics.

The “Who is Your Maize or Wheat Super Woman?” stories are featured on the CIMMYT website from Monday, March 2, 2015 in the lead up to International Women’s Day on Sunday, March 8, 2015.

Contributions include blog stories about women from Britain, Canada, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, and the United States. Their stories will also be made available in Spanish-language.

SUPER WOMEN BLOG POSTS: