Theme: Gender equality, youth and social inclusion

Gender and other social differences such as age, wealth and ethnicity, have an enormous influence upon the success of agricultural interventions. To ensure equitable impacts and benefits to rural people, CIMMYT emphasizes inclusive research and development interventions. Starting with the collection of data on gender and social differences, efforts are underway to address these gaps and ensure equitable adoption of technologies and practice. This includes working towards gender-equitable control of productive assets and resources; technologies that reduce women’s labor; and improved capacity of women and youth to participate in decision-making.

“First Lady of Wheat” in Mexico to celebrate her father, Norman Borlaug

Written by on April 13, 2015. Posted in Features.

The late wheat breeder Norman Borlaug was so dedicated to his work that he was away from home 80 percent of the time, either travelling or in the field, recalls his daughter, Jeanie Borlaug Laube.

Photo: Alfredo Sáenz/CIMMYT

Scientist Borlaug, who died in 2009 at age 95, led efforts in the mid-20th century to develop high-yielding, disease resistant, semi-dwarf wheat varieties that helped save more than 1 billion lives in Pakistan, India and other areas of the developing world.

Wheat breeders, scientists and members of the global food security community celebrated his birthday at a week-long meeting hosted by CIMMYT in the vast wheat fields of the Yaqui Valley near the town of Ciudad Obregón in Mexico’s northern state of Sonora.

Each year, CIMMYT Visitors’ Week serves as an opportunity to brainstorm, exchange ideas and celebrate Borlaug’s legacy on the anniversary of his birthday.

Borlaug, who would have been 101 this year, started work on wheat improvement in the mid-1940s near CIMMYT headquarters outside Mexico City.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 partly for his experimental work, much of which took place in the hot, dry conditions of Obregón, which resemble conditions in many developing countries where CIMMYT works.

This year, his daughter, who is co-chair of the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative, a partnership to study and and control devastating stem, yellow and leaf wheat rust disease, spoke on women and agriculture at the event. She is also involved with the Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum Mentor Award, which honors mentors of both genders who aid women working in Triticum species and near relatives. Additionally, she sits on the board of directors of the Borlaug Training Foundation, established to provide agricultural education and guidance to scientists from developing nations.

She shared her views in the following interview.

Q: What is your current involvement in agriculture?

I’m not officially in agriculture – I’m a Spanish teacher. I taught for 40 years in high school until I retired three years ago. In the last 25 years of my career I had started a community service program at two different schools in Dallas and ran it. This involves 750 kids a year out doing community service. I still taught one Spanish class but my basic job was community service director. I haven’t been involved in agriculture directly. Indirectly, I have been because I was Norman Borlaug’s daughter so I’ve been around it, but I wasn’t raised on a farm, never lived on a farm, didn’t study agriculture or science in school.

What is your current involvement with wheat?

I’m co-chair of the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative – I go to the conferences once a year where all the wheat scientists of the world get together. I go to all the conferences and sit and listen and try to learn and follow what is going on with rust and the different problems they are having with wheat. I’m involved with the Women in Triticum Award. I visit and follow up with them and they are the ones who are out in the field learning how to become scientists and continue the profession. That’s how I’m involved in wheat.

Q: What are your views on women in agriculture?

I was in Pakistan last year and the U.S. Department of Agriculture set up a meeting with women who were all scientists working on their doctoral degrees – or already had a Ph.D. in agriculture. The discussions were very interesting as far as the difficulties that women find in this field and the pluses and minuses that are involved with that. It was interesting to hear different aspects of what they were feeling. The academic studies were not a difficult thing for them, but the reality of raising a family and keeping a profession going and taking care of a husband or children at the same time as being away from home presented problems.

No matter what profession women are in, challenges confront them because we have to multi-task. It doesn’t matter whether you are an accountant, a geneticist or a teacher – as a mother or trying to run a family and a profession, I think it’s challenging for a lot of women.

Q: What impresses you about women in agriculture?

I’m always amazed at the women scientists who are out there working at these wheat conferences and out in the in the field and taking care of their families from afar or even before they get married or have children, just the dedication they have to helping feed the world.

Q: What are your views on food security?

I don’t think the general population has any clue as to what goes on with agriculture. As my dad used to say, everybody just thinks the food comes from the grocery store and that’s where it is – it just pops in there. The average person doesn’t have a clue about that.

Q: What has changed since your father’s time?

I imagine he’d be facing the same challenges. I think it would be really interesting if he were still around because he’d be going crazy right now with all of this fighting about gluten-free and over genetically modified plants. He was so dedicated. His mission was to feed the world.

I think it is still the same mission. I think it is probably just a little harder because you have more public opinion and lack of info for what you need. He was changing genes and they are still doing that and they need to because they need to find plants that require less fertilizer and less water and provide more protein. What is amazing to me is to think about how they are working with computers now and he did all this in his head with notebooks.

He’d leave home at five in the morning and get home at eight at night. When he was in town he was gone about 80 percent of the time. When he first started this shuttle breeding program he’d come to Sonora. That was in the 40s – he had to go up through Arizona and back down at first because there were no roads. He’d be up here for three months, then he’d go back down, then he’d go to Toluca and South America, then he started going to India and Pakistan. In later years he was going Africa, so he was never home.

Q: Where did you grow up?

I was raised in Mexico City. My brother was born in Mexico and I came here when I was 14 months old. I lived here until I went to college. I did my schooling down here.

Q: Did your father try and encourage women in science and agriculture?

Yes he did. Back then there weren’t very many women in agriculture and scence. I think he’d be very pleased to see the turn with what’s happening with women in agriculture.

Q: What is it like celebrating your father?

It’s really neat. When my dad realized that he was going to die he asked me to bring ashes back to Mexico so I did. The last two years we came before he died, we came in a private jet because he couldn’t travel. It was so hard to get here. I remember I looked at his face as we were approaching Obregón. His face was just pure relief. He loved this place and he’d see the wheat fields and it was magical for him. Coming back is kind of bittersweet, realizing how much he loved the farmers too as they loved him.

Maize and wheat global gender study: coding large-scale data to reveal the drivers of agricultural innovation

Written by on March 9, 2015. Posted in News.

Over the last week, MAIZE and WHEAT CRP investigators from the global cross-CRP study on gender in agricultural innovation met at El Batán from 26 Feb to 1 March to take stock of progress so far and plan the next steps in the implementation of this unique research initiative.

From left to right: Patti Petesch, Diana Lopez, Paula Kantor, Vongai Kandiwa, Dina Najjar, Lone Badstue, Anuprita Shukla and Amare Tegbaru. Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT

The study will draw on interviews and focus groups with men and women engaged in small-scale farming around the world, to hear in their words how they practice and innovate in agriculture, and what factors, especially gender relations, they feel have influenced their success and failures. Through rigorous analysis both of the broader patterns in the data and delving deep into the case studies, the aim is to develop strategic research publications as well as practical observations and tools to integrate gender-sensitivity into agricultural research and development.

The appetite for more knowledge about the role of gender was clear at Gender and Development Specialist Paula Kantor’s well-attended brown bag lunch on Friday, introducing the GIZ-funded project on gender constraints to wheat R4D in Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Pakistan.

As CIMMYT Gender Specialist Lone Badstue opened the workshop, she reflected on how quickly gender research has advanced since the CRPs were set up in 2011. From less than one full-time gender-specialist on staff, there are now the equivalent of eight full-time staff working with the CRPs on gender and 20 large projects with gender-integration.

At the workshop, the gender specialists shared their experiences of the 19 case studies conducted under MAIZE and WHEAT so far, before settling down to discuss data quality control and coding.

CGIAR gender specialists talk International Women’s Day

Written by on March 6, 2015. Posted in Features.

CGIAR gender specialists met at CIMMYT El Batán last week, 26 February – 1 March, to discuss the next steps in the global comparative field study of gender norms, agency and agricultural innovation. This team of principal investigators from MAIZE and WHEAT will conduct more than 70 cases globally by the close of 2015.

Gender specialists Dina Najjar (DN) of ICARDA, Amare Tegbaru (AT) of IITA and Anuprita Shukla (AS) of Glasgow Caledonian University discuss the cross-CRP gender study, International Women’s Day and women’s rights in the field and the work place.

Why do you think we still celebrate International Women’s Day today, and why do you think that it is still relevant?

AT: International women’s day is one of the greatest milestones—it’s a cry for justice, for fairness, for equality (as we articulate it), endorsed by the United Nations member states. The celebration is not only to show solidarity but also to remind us to renew our commitments—to make relevant the work and research we are doing in science to women, who are in fact constitute over 75% of the labor force in agriculture. It’s a way of questioning ourselves and what we’ve done so far and what we need to do in the future.

What obstacles do you see for women in the field in agriculture?

AS: I haven’t started field work yet, but from my previous experiences in Southeast Asia it is an extremely patriarchal society. The structural discrimination of women will be the hardest problem to address and it might take some time for women to internalize they have a right to the same products and services as men. This is why it is important we create enough opportunity of space for dialogue. Women have been restricted as a whole in society. If there is an opportunity to have dialogue, they will demand their rights.

Is gender just about the women?

DN: It is very important to target both men and women when studying gender. Men hold the social approvals in these communities; if you hold a training for women and their husbands do not allow them to go, then you have a problem. In many of the regions we work in, men hold the power and are the decision makers. You have to involve the men in empowering the women. It is not enough to only target any woman as it depends on the generation and social class of the woman. A woman who is divorced has completely different needs and aspirations than a woman who has children or a woman who is single or has a child in school or a child with no education. It’s not that simple, it’s not just about a woman.

Have you seen a change in women entering the field of science or agriculture?

AS: There are many factors explaining why women didn’t go into these programs but now do. Before, there were no quotas, no incentive for women to join. Speaking from the developing nation perspective, globalization has had a liberalizing effect. It is a gradual change but it is taking place, and hopefully it will become the norm that women are joining science and agriculture programs in equal number to men.

Who is your maize or wheat Superwoman?

DN: My wheat superwoman is a woman named Nafisa from Upper Egypt. She gained land after she was widowed, leaving her with two sons. She cultivates the wheat and manages the land all on her own. Through this land ownership she was selected to serve on committees and became a decision maker in her community. She took on an entirely new role in her community, which was for a female to manage a farm.

She is an amazing woman, just the things she had to endure and the resistance she faced from her family and neighbors. No one supported her, but she stood up to that, because of her desire for a better future for her children. If she does not farm the land it will get taken from her, and if she gets married, the land will be taken from her. This is something unheard of in this very conservative community where it is typically too dangerous for a woman to farm land. She is a pioneering, determined and strategic thinking woman. Many would describe her as a warrior; I personally admire her persistence and courage. She is definitely a wheat hero.

Do you think gender will be more on the agenda in CRP phase 2?

AT: Yes, it should. Firstly because there is strong political support, not only because donors are asking for it, demanding it, putting more money for it, but also because now we are not only talking about gender, we have started delivering on gender as well. So there are results—the number of global gender studies which we have collected in over 70 places would tell how this could be integrated into the next phase of the CRP.

Men’s roles and attitudes are key to gender progress, says CIMMYT gender specialist

Written by Mike Listman on March 4, 2015. Posted in Features.

Gender research and outreach should engage men more effectively, according to Paula Kantor, CIMMYT gender and development specialist who is leading an ambitious new project to empower and improve the livelihoods of women, men and youth in wheat-based systems of Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Pakistan.

“Farming takes place in socially complex environments, involving individual women and men who are embedded in households, local culture and communities, and value chains — all of which are colored by expectations of women’s and men’s appropriate behaviors,” said Kantor, who gave a brownbag presentation on the project to an audience of more than 100 scientists and other staff and visitors at El Batán on 20 February. “We tend to focus on women in our work and can inadvertently end up alienating men, when they could be supporters if we explained what we’re doing and that, in the end, the aim is for everyone to progress and benefit.”

Funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the new project will include 14 village case studies across the three countries. It is part of a global initiative involving 13 CGIAR research programs (CRPs), including the CIMMYT-led MAIZE and WHEAT. Participants in the global project will carry out 140 case studies in 29 countries; WHEAT and MAIZE together will conduct 70 studies in 13 countries. Kantor and Lone Badstue, CIMMYT’s strategic leader for gender research, are members of the Executive Committee coordinating the global initiative, along with Gordon Prain of CIP-led Roots, Tubers and Bananas Program, and Amare Tegbaru of the IITA-led Program on Integrated Systems for the Humid Tropics.

“The cross-CRP gender research initiative is of unprecedented scope,” said Kantor. “For WHEAT, CIMMYT, and partners, understanding more clearly how gendered expectations affect agricultural innovation outcomes and opportunities can give all of our research more ‘ooomph’, helping social and biophysical scientists to work together better to design and conduct socially and technically robust agricultural R4D, and in the end achieve greater adoption and impact.”

To that end, outcomes will include joint interpretation of results with CRP colleagues and national stakeholders, scientific papers, policy engagement and guidelines for integrating gender in wheat research-for-development, according to Kantor. “The research itself is important, but can’t sit on a shelf,” she explained. “We will devise ways to communicate it effectively to partners in CGIAR and elsewhere.”

Another, longer-term goal is to question and unlock gender constraints to agricultural innovation, in partnership with communities. Kantor said that male migration and urbanization are driving fundamental, global changes in gender dynamics, but institutional structures and policies must keep pace. “The increase in de facto female-headed households in South Asia, for example, would imply that there are more opportunities for women in agriculture,” she explained, “but there is resistance, and particularly from institutions like extension services and banks which have not evolved in ways that support and foster the empowerment of those women.”

“To reach a tipping point on this, CGIAR and the CGIAR Research Programs need to work with unusual partners — individuals and groups with a presence in communities and policy circles and expertise in fostering social change,” said Kantor. “Hopefully, the case studies in the global project will help us identify openings and partners to facilitate some of that change.”

Kantor has more than 15 years of experience in research on gender relations and empowerment in economic development, microcredit, rural and urban livelihoods, and informal labor markets, often in challenging settings. She served four years as Director and Manager of the gender and livelihoods research portfolios at the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) in Kabul. “AREU has influenced policy, for example, through its work on governance structures at the provincial and district levels,” Kantor said. “They will be a partner in the Afghan study.”

She added that working well in challenging contexts requires a complex combination of openness about study aims and content in communities, sensitivity and respect for relationships and protocol, careful arrangements for logistics and safety, diverse and well-trained study teams and being flexible and responsive. “Reflections on doing gender research in these contexts will likely be an output of the study.”

After her first month at CIMMYT, Kantor, who will be based in Islamabad, Pakistan, said she felt welcome and happy. “My impression is that people here are very committed to what they do and that research is really a priority. I also sense real movement and buy-in on the gender front. An example is the fact that, of all the proposals that could’ve been put forward for funding from BMZ, the organization chose one on gender. That’s big.”

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:

Asriani Anie Annisa Hasan Protects Local Maize Varieties

Candice Gardner Plays Major Role in Preserving U.S. Maize Diversity

Jennifer Brito’s “Tortillas Verdes” Improve Maize Nutritional Value

Chhavi Tiwari Aids Women Farmers with Zinc-Fortified Wheat

Julieta Salazar Boosts Nutritional Profile of Maize in Guatemala

Jessica Rutkoski Conquers Math Demons, Finds Success as Wheat Breeder

Julie King Tames Wild Relatives of Wheat, Improving Resilience

Diane Holdorf Promotes Sustainability to Support Smallholders

Dolores Robles Gonzalez Spurs Farmers to Adapt Conservation Agriculture

Suchismita Mondal Develops Climate Change Resilient Wheat

Jane Ininda “Priceless Gem” to Maize Development in Africa

Julie Miller Jones Dispels Myths that Wheat Protein is Unhealthy

Nobel Winner Barbara McClintock Discovered “Jumping Genes”

Rosalind Morris an “Outstanding Wheat Cytogeneticist”

Jeanie Borlaug Laube Unites Global Wheat Community

Paula Kantor Engages Men to support Gender Progress

Evangelina Villegas, CIMMYT Super Woman Developed Quality-Protein Maize

Opportunity: integrating gender in crop research today!

Written by on February 23, 2015. Posted in Features.

CIMMYT Gender Specialist Lone Badstue attended a CGIAR Gender Network meeting in the Philippines during 19-23 January. Participants discussed CGIAR’s progress and results in gender research, along with plans for collective, cross-program activities that contribute to CGIAR innovation.

Q: How do you think we can inspire project leaders, farmers, scientists, and others to view gender as an integral part of CGIAR projects?

A: When you want to introduce something different and new, you’re going to have varying levels of acceptance and pushback. Integrating gender is a change process, and it isn’t something that happens fast.

Ultimately we want to help as many people as we can, everyone agrees on that. We should bring forward our gender agenda as something that will help us reach that common goal, with the end benefit being worth the change and investment. This is why evidence is so important – if there’s anything researchers and scientists respect it’s evidence, and that is why gender researchers from 12 different CGIAR Research Programs (CRP) have embarked on a global study of gender norms to increase the development impact of research programs.

Q: Speaking of the CGIAR Global Study on Gender, could you discuss the goals and outcomes?

A: This study will provide real life examples of processes on the ground.

The information will really help CGIAR Research Programs to hone their impact pathways — models of how projects see themselves achieving impact — because right now those pathways involve many theoretical assumptions. We want to show the value of qualitative research and how this complements quantitative research and reveals processes that the latter can’t. We’ll also learn how these processes matter in diverse locations and circumstances worldwide.

Q: The characteristics of a proposal where gender is mainstreamed were also discussed to see how they can make an integral part of project rsearch and activities. What would a gender-mainstreamed research proposal look like?

A: A gender mainstreamed, or gender responsive research proposal, reflects explicitly on the characteristics of its target beneficiaries and addresses their concerns and experiences as an integral dimension in the research design. This means knowing the context and ensuring that research outputs address the needs of the different groups you want to serve. To help scientists and research teams think about how to begin to address these issues when designing a new proposal, the CIMMYT gender unit has developed a brief guidebook.

Q: What are some overall conclusions that came out of the CGIAR Gender Network meeting?

A: We have a moment of opportunity. The meeting allowed us to share our experiences, identify key tools to promote gender mainstreaming (gender mainstreaming is a globally accepted approach to achieving gender equality) in CRP research and establish a collective vision of our gender research. We need to leverage this momentum and focus on the goal of establishing a solid evidence-base for gender research, thus integrating a gender-framework in all CGAR projects where it is relevant.

Gender matters in farm power

Written by on October 28, 2014. Posted in News.

The goals of the Farm Power and Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification (FACASI) project are to address the issues of declining farm power in eastern and southern Africa, and to reduce the labor burden that comes with low farm mechanization, by promoting small-scale mechanization based on two-wheel tractors. Farm power is particularly scarce for female-headed households (FHHs), That have limited access to human labor and often don’t own (or are culturally forbidden to operate) draft animals. FHHs are often the last households to access land preparation services, which leads to lower yields. Even in households headed by men, women supply most of the farm labor and perform highly labor-intensive tasks, such as weeding, threshing, shelling or transport of inputs and agricultural commodities to and from the market by head-loading.

Front row, from left to right: Mulunesh Tsegaye, FACASI gender and agriculture specialist; Katrine Danielsen KIT; Elizabeth Mukewa consultant; Mahlet Mariam, consultant; and David Kahan CIMMYT, business model specialist. Back row, from left to right: Anouka van Eerdewijk KIT; Lone Badstue CIMMYT strategic leader, gender research and mainstreaming; and Frédéric Baudron, FACASI project leader. Photo: Steffen Schulz/CIMMYT

Although mechanization has the potential to close the gender gap in agriculture, past efforts based on large four-wheel tractors have generally led to inequitable access to mechanization, favoring wealthier farmers, and have often widened the gender gap. Similarly, although most of the labor burden in agriculture is placed on women, it is often men’s tasks that are mechanized. Will small-scale mechanization follow the same pattern? Or will the use of less expensive two-wheel tractors promote equitable access to mechanization and contribute to closing the gender gap? In addition, will the versatility of these small machines accelerate the mechanization of tasks done by women? Or is women’s current labor burden unlikely to translate into demand for mechanization, regardless of its form, because of socio-cultural norms affecting gender dynamics? Finally, if women’s tasks are mechanized, will this create opportunities for them, or alienate them in their household chores?

To answer parts of these questions, a CRP MAIZE competitive grant was awarded to the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) at the beginning of 2014 to conduct a gender analysis of small-scale mechanization in the FACASI sites of Ethiopia (Hawassa and Assela) and Kenya (Bungoma and Laikipia). The research team included: Anouka Van Eerdewijk, KIT gender advisor, Katrine Danielsen, KIT senior advisor; gender and rights; Elizabeth Mukewa, consultant in charge of the field work in Kenya; and Mahlet Mariam, consultant in charge of the field work in Ethiopia. The team presented its finding to the FACASI project in Addis Ababa on 10 October.

The first conclusion of the study is that women’s labor burden itself is unlikely to translate into demand for mechanization, because women’s labor is poorly valued, women’s labor burden is often not recognized and women have little control over the financial resources of the household. However, mechanizing men’s tasks could indirectly reduce women’s labor burden. For example, mechanizing land preparation and seeding – generally a task handled by men – may reduce the need for weeding – a task generally done by women – because of early planting and good crop establishment. In addition, mechanizing men’s tasks would reduce the need for women to prepare and transport food to men working in the field. Substituting mechanization for animal draft power could also reduce the number of livestock owned by the household, and reduce the labor needed for livestock feeding and manure collection, tasks which are generally done by women. Substituting mechanization for animal draft power could also reduce the number of livestock owned by the household, and reduce the labor needed for livestock feeding and manure collection, tasks which are generally done by women.

A second conclusion is that there are large variations in contexts, household types, and even between women in similar household types. For example, pooled labor is used to reduce the labor burden in some locations (e.g., Assela), but not in others (e.g., Laikipia). In addition, women in male-headed households often don’t have control over resources for reducing their labor burden, whereas women in FHHs might have control, but are resource-constrained. In male-headed households where women do control part of the resources,women can choose options to reduce their labor burden and adopt mechanization. This is particularly true of women who own land and/or have a formal employment outside agriculture. These variations suggest that demand for, and the benefits of mechanization cannot be assumed, but need to be considered and monitored in context.

The findings of this study will be used to develop a set of gender sensitive indicators to monitor and evaluate FACASI. They will also guide a number of research activities in the project, including the testing of mechanization business models with women entrepreneurs, in which the adoption and benefits of mechanization can be further scrutinized for different household types and members.

Addressing challenges in maize breeding to deliver improved seed to African smallholder farmers

Written by on September 17, 2014. Posted in Features.

Members of a CBO that produces improved open-pollinated varieties in Malangeni, Swaziland, host visitors from NSIMA and DTM.

In Swaziland, maize is a staple crop and a source of income for many of the nation’s farmers. “The work on our staple crop cannot be overstated,” said Dr. Vusumuzi Mkhonta, acting director, Department of Agriculture, Research and Specialist Services in Swaziland. “If anything were to happen to maize, the entire population might perish.”

Mkhonta was speaking at the opening ceremony of the annual collaborators meeting, which brought together partners of the New Seed Initiative for Maize in Africa (NSIMA) and the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) projects in Mbabane, Swaziland, held 13-15 August. Mkhonta recognized the importance of maize research in the country to enhance food security and livelihoods. He also expressed appreciation for support from the Centre for Agricultural Research and Development in Southern Africa (CCARDESA).

Participants discussed some of the challenges in maize breeding that impact the delivery of improved seed. These include the parasitic weed Striga and maize lethal necrosis (MLN), a deadly disease that has affected maize-growing areas in eastern Africa.

The CIMMYT-led NSIMA project, funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), involves five countries: Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo (Katanga Province), Lesotho, South Africa and Swaziland. In South Africa, the project is implemented in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and Limpopo provinces, serving smallholder farmers who do not have access to maize hybrid seeds. “The large seed companies that operate in South Africa cater to commercial farmers and sell seed in huge quantities,” said James Gethi, CIMMYT seed system specialist and NSIMA project leader. “This means that farmers who need about two to three kilograms of seed are left out of the improved seed network.”

The CBO’s leader addresses visitors from the NSIMA and DTMA projects during the field day.

Since its inception, the project has been contributing to food and seed security in the southern Africa region. “Within three years, we have delivered 500 tons of open-pollinated varieties (OPVs) of improved seed to smallholder farmers within the NSIMA countries,” said Gethi, citing this as a key highlight of the project.

“Seed production is the second most important pillar for DTMA,” said Dr. Tsedeke Abate, the project leader. Abate indicated that in Kenya, seed production in the past year was significantly lower as a result of MLN disease. Abate highlighted the importance of the partnership between the project and small- to medium-sized seed companies that play an important role in disseminating drought- tolerant maize seed to farmers.

Dr. Abebe Menkir, a maize breeder with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), gave a keynote address during the meeting. “Resistance to Striga is an important trait for maize varieties specifically developed for areas infested with the parasite,” said Menkir. “Let us bring the technologies together to benefit farmers.”

“We need innovative systems for transforming agriculture and research results as business,” said Professor Timothy Simalenga, Executive Director of CCARDESA. Simalenga gave an overview of CCARDESA’s role, which cuts across the research value chain.

Participants visited a seed processing unit in Malangeni, run by a community-based organization (CBO) that currently produces ZM521, an improved OPV. “This women-dominated farmers’ group specializes in producing certified seed for use by the community,” said Gethi. With assistance from the SDC-supported Seed and Markets Project (SAMP), the farmers have acquired machinery. “CIMMYT is providing the group with basic seed and technical support for production of certified seed.”

The DTMA project also awarded country teams for their efforts in breeding and dissemination of drought- tolerant maize during the meeting. The Zimbabwe and Angola teams won the breeding and dissemination awards, respectively. The winners received a plaque and cash prizes.

The NSIMA project is providing improved open-pollinated seed to farmers who did not have access to them before. Project staff and partners pose for a group photo during the annual meeting.

CSISA: Making a Difference in South Asia

Written by on September 5, 2014. Posted in News.

Anu Dhar, Cynthia Mathys, Jennifer Johnson

Staff members of the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) are developing and implementing projects aimed at improving agricultural production and standards of living for farmers in South Asia, with excellent results. At their “Seed Summit for Enhancing the Seed Supply Chain in Eastern India” meeting in Patna, Bihar on 14-15 May they worked to design solutions to improve the delivery of high-yielding seed varieties in eastern India, a region that has traditionally suffered from lack of access to these varieties and low seed replacement rates. The meeting, which included over 60 seed experts from the government, research and private sectors, focused on topics such as better-targeted subsidies on seeds, improved storage infrastructure and stronger extension systems to increase accessibility and adoption of improved seed varieties.

The roundtable “Sustainable Intensification in South Asia’s Cereal Systems: Investment Strategies for Productivity Growth, Resource Conservation, and Climate Risk Management” was held on 19 May in New Delhi. It brought together 20 firms and entrepreneurs to build collaborative action plans and joint investment strategies under CSISA to identify new product tie-ins, joint ventures, technical collaborations and shared marketing channels in order to bring high-tech farming ideas to India’s risk-prone ecologies.

In India, CSISA seeks to increase crop yields through the provision of more accurate, location-specific fertilizer recommendations to maize and rice farmers with the “Crop Manager” decision-making tool. The web-based and mobile Android application uses information provided by farmers including field location, planting method, seed variety, typical yields and method of harvesting to create a personalized fertilizer application recommendation at critical crop growth stages to increase yield and profit.

CSISA-Nepal has initiated a series of participatory research trials in farmers’ fields, in order to promote maize triple cropping, the practice of planting maize during the spring period after winter crop harvesting, when fields would usually be fallow. The practice, while proven to be highly remunerative, is not widely popular. The trials seek to determine optimum management practices for maize in order to encourage triple cropping and to generate additional income for farmers.

Greater gender equality in agriculture is also an important goal of CSISA, supported through the creation of Kisan Sakhi, a support group to empower women farmers in Bihar, India by “disseminating new climate-resilient and sustainable farming technologies and practices that will reduce women’s drudgery and bridge the gender gap in agriculture.” A CSISA-Bangladesh project has already had a positive impact on the lives of rural women, providing new farming and pond management techniques that have helped them to greatly increase the productivity of their fish ponds and gain new respect within their families and communities.

CIMMYT-CCAFS explores innovative ways of researching gender and climate change in farming households

Written by on August 7, 2014. Posted in News.

By Florence Sipalla /CIMMYT

CIMMYT scientists working on the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) are exploring novel ways to conduct research on gender and climate change. “Household methodologies offer a potentially innovative entry point for climate-smart interventions,” said CIMMYT-CCAFS project leader Dr. Clare Stirling, explaining the project’s interest in doing in-depth gender research. “In the past, most agricultural interventions have focused on men, even though women provide most of the workforce and day-to-day management and knowledge on farms.”

CIMMYT-CCAFS is keen on tapping into women’s knowledge of farming practices. “Studies show that involving and empowering women in decision-making can have a significant impact on production,” said Stirling. “Evidence suggests that household methodologies can offer a very effective route to increasing the impact of work by CIMMYT-CCAFS.” The CIMMYT-CCAFS team’s commitment to gender research has not gone unnoticed. “At the last CCAFS annual meeting, we won the gender award in recognition of the progress that we have made in our gender activities and outputs,” said Stirling.

The scientists, drawn from multi-disciplinary backgrounds in conservation agriculture, maize and socioeconomics programs, recently held a workshop on gender research methodologies that have been successful in other settings. The workshop was facilitated by gender consultants Cathy Farnworth and Helena Zefanias Lowe, and its purpose was to increase awareness about new approaches. Participants also discussed ways to improve the welfare of women in farming communities by ensuring they are part of the actionable implementation of research at farm level.

One of the methodologies discussed was the Gender Action Learning System (GALS), which allows researchers to use visual tools to gather more nuanced information from farming communities during household studies. “GALS creates opportunities for both men and women. It starts with individuals and grows to collective action,” said Lowe. Sharing examples from Sierra Leone, where GALS was implemented by the International Fund for Agricultural Development, Lowe demonstrated how the method enabled researchers to generate information on how men and women shared resources and decision-making power in the household.

CIMMYT-CCAFS scientists held a workshop in Nairobi, Kenya, on gender research methodologies that have been successful in other settings. Photo: Florence Sipalla/CIMMYT

“When we talk about gender, the tendency is to think of it solely as women’s issues, but the GALS method brings other relationships into the picture such as co-wives, older men and younger women,” said Lowe. The use of this methodology resulted in some successes within the community, such as an increased number of women in farmers’ associations and leadership positions, as well as improved negotiation skills for both men and women. Through participation in GALS, some members of the farming community also became trainers and are now able to share their knowledge with others.

Farnworth indicated that the household methodologies discussed at the workshop were not just about women’s empowerment. “The idea is that everybody changes and becomes empowered because men are also disempowered by some of the roles they play,” she said. In discussing household methodologies, Farnworth noted that a great deal of extension work focuses on the household as a unit and does not examine intra-household dynamics, hence the need to consider new methodologies.

CIMMYT socio-economist Dr. Sika Gbegbelegbe gained new knowledge from the workshop. “The method goes beyond the science to bring about transformational change,” she said, adding that learning how GALS had been successful in the West African context was indicative that it could be applied elsewhere. “However, it takes time to implement, to see the change happening in people’s lives,” she added.

CIMMYT-CCAFS scientists identify maize varieties that can withstand drought and high temperatures in Zimbabwe

Written by on July 28, 2014. Posted in News.

By Florence Sipalla and Jill Cairns/CIMMYT

Schoolchildren singing a song they composed about climate change and agriculture at a field day in Gokwe, Zimbabwe.

CIMMYT scientists working on the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) have identified the most suitable maize varieties for high temperature and drought-prone environments in Zimbabwe. The scientists have been conducting research on drought- and heat-tolerant maize varieties in areas that are vulnerable to climate variability and climate change in Zimbabwe. Working in collaboration with Sustainable Agriculture Technology (SAT), a local NGO, the scientists are testing the suitability of drought- and heat-tolerant varieties as a solution to challenges farmers face in “climate hotspots.”
These farmers are vulnerable to climate change due to erratic and limited rainfall, a situation that is worsened by increasing temperatures. “To identify these areas, we looked at climate change patterns across Zimbabwe which allowed us to identify five wards: Bikita, Gokwe, Gutu, Mutare and Zaka,” said CIMMYT physiologist Dr. Jill Cairns. The scientists then downscaled projections of monthly changes in rainfall and temperature in these wards to confirm their vulnerability and get a better understanding of the seasonal changes likely to occur by 2050.

In this maize demonstration plot, crop management was done using hand weeding.

In partnership with SAT, scientists are screening drought- and heat-tolerant maize varieties in demonstration plots using different farmer-managed practices that are accessible to local communities. “SAT has very good links to extension leaders, which has helped us reach the community,” said Cairns. “It holds field days at each demonstration location and has managed to engage locally.” During these events, farmers are provided with information on climate change, improved maize varieties and modern agricultural practices. Cairns said highlights from field days she has attended included seeing schoolchildren sing about climate change and agriculture, and a group of HIV-positive women singing about agriculture and improved seed. The drought-tolerant maize varieties used in this study are from the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) project breeding pipeline, which is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The research on heat is a component of DTMA being funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Hidden factors contribute to food insecurity in female-headed households

Written by on July 1, 2014. Posted in News.

By Florence Sipalla/CIMMYT

Results of a survey conducted by the Adoption Pathways (AP) project indicate that even when male-headed and female-headed households have the same resources, the latter are still less food-secure. This difference could be attributed to unreported social exclusion, discrimination and access to credit facilities which the researchers will explore further through group discussions and using repeated observations (panel data) with the farmers.

ACIAR donor representatives at Egerton University.

“Equal access to inputs, human capital, resources and institutional services may not close the gender food security gap,” said Menale Kassie, CIMMYT socioeconomist and the AP project leader. “The quality of information extension workers are providing to female farmers could be different.” Kassie presented research results of a survey conducted in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania to donor representatives from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) led by Nick Austin, the chief executive officer, and Mellissa Wood, director of the Australian International Food Security Research Centre (AIFSRC) at Egerton University in Njoro, Kenya.

Farmers who adopt a suite of conservation agriculture (CA) technologies get the best returns. “If farmers combine technologies, the income they generate is much higher,” Kassie said. “Farmers who adopted a combination of sustainable intensification practices (SIPs) such as crop rotation, minimum tillage and improved maize seed had the highest returns.” Survey results from Tanzania also show that adoption of improved varieties improves the food security status of food-insecure households.

The results also shed light on the spill-over effects of SIP adoption, risk of crop failure and the cost of risk reduction. The AP project is compiling detailed gender-disaggregated data to study causes of food insecurity and technology gaps. “This data set is cross-cutting and will be used by stakeholders beyond the project partners,” Kassie said. “We are bringing students on board to increase research productivity.”

From right: Donor representatives ACIAR CEO Nick Austin, AIFSRC director Mellissa Wood and Australian High Commission’s Paul Greener listen to Egerton University

Wilcyster Nyateko, a master’s student at Egerton University using AP data and working under the supervision of Professor Gideon Obare, presented her research proposal “Determinants of diffusion of agro-innovation amongst smallholder farmers in Eastern and Western Kenya” to the donor delegation. “The AP data helped to widen my perspectives,” said Nyateko, who is going to include variables such as plot characteristics, tenure and distance of the plot from the household and market in her analysis based on the feedback she received. Other stakeholders who will have access to the panel data include Egerton University’s policy thinktank, Tegemeo Institute. “This is a fascinating data set,” Austin said after the presentation.

The project has contributed to capacity building of partners and young economists who have participated in data collection. “The project also provided employment opportunities to the enumerators,” Kassie said. The project has produced 15 publications and seven policy briefs and presented research results in various international forums. “Some of the challenges encountered include attrition problems such as spouses working in distant places and who are not able to participate in the survey or families included in the original sample who had migrated to other villages.”

AP plans to produce more empirical outputs using the panel data, build the capacity of partners and share the research outputs with key stakeholders (e.g. policymakers, development partners, researchers and farmers). “The key challenge is taking research products to these stakeholders; doing so requires more resources and time, beyond the project period,” Kassie said. The donors also paid a courtesy call to the Egerton University leadership where they were hosted by Professor Rose Mwonya, the deputy vice chancellor of academic affairs, and Professor John Mwangi, who gave them an overview of the university and its involvement in the AP project.

Improving women farmer’s access to agricultural information and training in India

Written by on June 20, 2014. Posted in News.

By Anuradha Dhar/CIMMYT

On a hot summer day in the Muzaffarpur District of Bihar State, India, 345 women farmers gathered to talk about the challenges they face in agriculture with a visiting team from the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. During the event, which was organized by the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), one woman said, “Brothers, if you are farmers, so are we.” The group responded with loud claps and whistles. The women then discussed their day-to-day issues and shared their enthusiasm to learn about new agricultural technologies and management practices.

It is relatively uncommon to see women in rural India – where gender discrimination runs deep and women often are not empowered to speak or make decisions – talk openly and passionately about their lives. The farmers who attended the CSISA meeting are members of the new initiative Kisan Sakhi, meaning “a woman farmer friend,” jointly started by CSISA and the Bihar Mahila Samakya, an Indian government program on women’s equality.

Women farmers discussing their training needs with the CSISA team. Photo: Madhulika Singh

Women work extensively on farms across India – participating in sowing, weeding and harvesting – and are responsible for managing farm work and household chores. However, their contribution in agriculture remains largely unseen and unacknowledged. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, women account for 43 percent of the agricultural labor force in developing countries and produce 60 percent of the food, yet compared with men farmers most women don’t have land rights or equal access to education or training.

Kisan Sakhi aims to empower women farmers in Bihar by disseminating new climate-resilient and sustainable farming technologies and practices that will reduce women’s drudgery and bridge the gender gap in agriculture. FAO estimates that the productivity gains from ensuring equal access to fertilizer, technology and tools could raise the total agricultural output in developing countries and reduce the number of hungry people.

“In spite of doing all kinds of work in the field, I never got the respect as a farmer that men farmers would get,” said Sumintra Devi, who is now a member of Kisan Sakhi. She is being introduced to new technologies and management practices such as improved weed management, maize intercropping, intensification of cropping systems with summer green gram, machine transplanting of rice under non-puddled conditions and nursery management. “We have discussions with the group members during which they identify the training needs and practices they would like to adopt,” said CSISA gender specialist Sugandha Munshi. In one such discussion, the women mentioned the painful and tedious process of shelling maize by hand. CSISA organized training that demonstrated post-harvest technologies such as a hand-powered maize sheller and “super bags” for effective grain storage (see photos on page 8). Six geographical areas – Aurai, Bandra, Bochaha, Gai Ghat, Kudhni and Musahri – in Muzaffarpur District have been identified for the pilot work. “Women farmers recognize that receiving information and skill is more important than short-term monetary support from a project,” said R.K. Malik, the leader of CSISA’s Objective 1 and the Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh hub manager.

CSISA has also started helping women farmers to become entrepreneurs. As part of Kisan Sakhi, four women self-help groups in the Bandra area are pooling resources to buy a rice-transplanting machine, which will help them to earn income by offering custom-hire services. “It is part of a major shift in perception of participating women groups. CSISA and its partnership with the government of Bihar now see an opportunity to involve women for adoption of new technologies and facilitate them to become service providers,” said Malik.