CGIAR Initiative on Gender Equality

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/117893

Part of the CGIAR Action Area on Systems Transformation

Primary CGIAR impact area: Gender equality, youth and social inclusion

https://www.cgiar.org/initiative/26-her-harnessing-equality-for-resilience-in-the-agrifood-system/

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Now showing 1 - 20 of 633

Delivering nutrient management impact through farmer-centric research: a systematic review of innovation systems in African smallholder systems
(Journal Article, 2025-06-13) Adolwa, Ivan S.; Zingore, Shamie; Mutegi, James; McNee, Matthew; Akorede, Bolaji A.; Masidza, Denver; Murrell, T. Scott; Ndungu, Samuel Mathu; Nchanji, Eileen; Cook, Simon; Oberthür, Thomas
CONTEXT: The performance of the agricultural sector in Africa still lags behind other regions. The current average maize productivity of 2 t ha-1 is below the global average of about 6 t ha-1. This low productivity threatens the livelihoods of a majority of the population. Despite decades of research and development investments, current agricultural innovation systems remain ineffective in supporting sustainable agricultural transformation. OBJECTIVE: This study traces the evolution of innovation systems in Africa as a backdrop to the adaptation of on-farm experimentation (OFE), which is a novel framework for accelerating research and development (R&D) impact. METHODS: A systematic review approach is augmented with social network analysis methods and primary and secondary data. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: We find that although current innovation systems have contributed to enhancing co-learning processes and have enabled the partial adoption of improved agronomic practices, resulting in increased nutrient uptake efficiency and crop productivity, several shortcomings have limited their impact. Despite their core focus on participatory and systemic R&D processes, our review points to their inability to effectively engage farmers. Hence, failing to generate scalable learning, and demonstrate sufficient value to farmers and other stakeholders. The OFE initiatives demonstrate how farmer-relevant insights integrated with field-based and digital evidence help spur a farmer-driven innovation development and decision support framework. SIGNIFICANCE: OFE is potentially a powerful enabler of current innovation systems performance as it provides the platform for a transformative farmer-led innovation process.
Women’s leadership in community-led forest governance in India
(News Item, 2025-06) Kachhap, Apurwa; Ravani, Khanjan; Rana, Meenu; Misra, Deepannita; Madappa, P.S.; Morgan, Miranda; Elias, Marlene
Forests are critical to sustaining the lives and environments of rural communities in India, home to the largest forest-dependent population in the world. Rural women tend to be particularly reliant on forests for fuelwood, food, fodder, medicine and more. For this reason, women are often the primary stewards of these common resources, relying on gender-specific knowledge of harvesting, processing, use and management. Yet women continue to face gender-based discrimination and marginalization in forest governance, and are less likely than men to take on meaningful leadership roles. This article explores how some women have managed to overcome these barriers to play active roles in forest governance and management, and what the outcomes of their leadership have been.
Women as stewards of environmental and social transformations in tropical forests
(News Item, 2025-06) Rogelja, Todora; Kroese, Luca; Bulkan, Janette; Elias, Marlene; Monterroso, Iliana; Öllerer, Barbara; Wallin, Ida
Women are driving transformative change across the tropics, yet their critical roles in forest management, conservation and resource use often remain unrecognized. From gathering non-timber forest products (NTFPs) to safeguarding sacred groves and leading community initiatives, women’s contributions are essential to the social and ecological fabric of forest-dependent communities. However, their access to resources and decision-making power remains limited. By discussing the essential roles that women play as environmental stewards, the articles in this edition of Tropical Forest Issues present the significant impacts that women can have on shaping the future of tropical forest landscapes.
AVENIR progress and impact assessment: Descriptive report
(Report, 2025-05-09) Muriithi, Cyrus; Ouedraogo, Issa; Chege, Christine; Kinyua, Michael; Nouwodjro, Paul; Diouf, Latyr; Maina, Wilson; Siagbe, Golli
This assessment of the AVENIR project activities demonstrates significant progress in building climate resilience and improving livelihoods among smallholder farmers in Senegal's Sedhiou and Tambacounda regions. Through its integrated approach combining climate-smart agriculture, economic empowerment, and capacity building (reaching 11,500 beneficiaries, 70% women and youth), the project has achieved measurable impacts across key outcome areas. The knowledge diffusion strategy shows success, with trained farmers serving as effective information nodes - each sharing agricultural knowledge with an average of 21 community members (median of 10 indicates most share with fewer individuals). Regression analysis confirms the program's efficacy, revealing farmers in intervention areas share knowledge 29 times more frequently than controls, with nutrition and integrated pest management training emerging as most impactful. Household resilience has strengthened significantly, evidenced by a composite Resilience Capacity Index of 47%, driven by key resilience pillars. Notable successes include Bakel department achieving 62% and Goudomp 54% resilience scores through integrated farming systems, and women demonstrating growing leadership with 11% participation in water resource management. Economic empowerment indicators show promise, particularly in agro-processing where bissap value chains generate average household earnings of 130,129 CFA. Nutrition outcomes improved substantially, with 36% of women now meeting minimum dietary diversity standards (MDD-W), rising to 61% in department like Bakel. While climate-smart agriculture adoption shows positive trends (79% manure management in Bounkiling), persistent challenges include uneven technology uptake (5.45% drip irrigation adoption) and geographic disparities in food security (39.9% severe insecurity in Tambacounda). The project's climate information services demonstrate strong potential (47% adoption in Goudomp), particularly when delivered through mobile platforms and community radio. These findings validate AVENIR's integrated approach while highlighting opportunities for targeted scaling - particularly in strengthening women's economic participation, expanding proven knowledge transfer systems, and addressing regional disparities through localized adaptation strategies. The results provide a robust evidence base for optimizing interventions during the remaining implementation period to maximize sustainable impact.
Making agricultural supply chains deliver better for women
(Journal Article, 2025-04-10) Joya, Fernanda Soto; Shijagurumayum, Meghajit; Wiegel, Jenny; Elias, Marlene; González, Silvia; Rodríguez-Fabilena, René; Licona, Andrea; Sánchez, Liliana; Rodríguez, Ivan; Sosa, Ítalo
Ecosystem restoration centered in people
(Journal Article, 2025-04-01) Mansourian, Stephanie; Djenontin, Ida N. S.; Elias, Marlene; Oldekop, Johan A; Derkyi, Mercy A. A.; Kull, Christian A.; Pacheco, Pablo
Strengthening women’s livelihoods through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA): Policy strategies for resilience and inclusion: The Bhubaneshwar Charter
(Brief, 2025-05-20) Narayanan, Sudha; Raghunathan, Kalyani; Kosec, Katrina; Paul, Meekha Hannah; Kumar, Deepak; Agnihotri, Satish B.; Murthy, Indu K.; Sarathy, Partha; Panda, Aditi
Globally, there is increasing recognition of the significant potential for social protection programs to sup-port sustainable livelihoods and build household resilience to climatic and economic shocks (Jordan et al., 2021; Norton et al., 2020). For women—who disproportionately bear the burden of these shocks—such programs serve as a critical safety net and a pathway to economic empowerment (Kosec et al., 2023; Mason & Agan, 2015). Yet, the extent to which social protection delivers on this promise depends on robust financing, inclusive program design, and effective implementation. Evidence suggests that public interventions often fall short in addressing gender inequalities, and that complementary efforts must be made to redress entrenched disadvantages that women might face in shaping, accessing, and benefiting from these programs.
Explorando la intersección entre el cambio climático y la violencia basada en género
(Video, 2025-02-26) Penel, Charlotte
Within the framework of the project “Generating more evidence on the challenges and experiences of women in climate change adaptation in national policies (of Guatemala),” funded by the Government of Ireland, this presentation explores the multiple intersections between climate change and gender-based violence (GBV), highlighting how climate impacts intensify human security risks and exacerbate pre-existing gender inequalities. By analyzing causal pathways such as economic and food insecurity, health, access to natural resources, and climate-induced displacement, the presentation identifies concrete mechanisms through which climate change contributes to increased GBV. It also emphasizes how factors such as poverty, age, education level, and migration status create intersectional vulnerabilities that disproportionately affect women, girls and other marginalised groups. Despite these vulnerabilities, women can be important agents of change and play a role in environmental conservation, climate resilience, and sustainable development. The presentation concludes with a call to develop research on these interlinked issues to further our understanding on this topic, especially in the Latin American region, as well as adopting holistic and intersectional approaches, fostering cross-sectoral collaboration to address the root causes of this nexus. Dentro del marco del proyecto “Obtener más evidencia sobre los desafíos y experiencias de las mujeres en materia de adaptación al cambio climático en las políticas a nivel nacional (de Guatemala)” financiado por el gobierno de Irlanda, esta presentación explora las múltiples intersecciones entre el cambio climático y la violencia basada en género (VBG), destacando cómo los impactos climáticos intensifican los riesgos para la seguridad humana y agravan las desigualdades de género preexistentes. A través del análisis de rutas causales como la inseguridad económica y alimentaria, la salud, el acceso a los recursos naturales y los desplazamientos inducidos por el clima, la presentación identifica mecanismos concretos mediante los cuales el cambio climático contribuye al aumento de la VBG. Asimismo, se enfatiza cómo factores como la pobreza, la edad, el nivel educativo y la situación migratoria generan vulnerabilidades interseccionales que afectan de manera desproporcionada a las mujeres, las niñas y otros grupos marginados. A pesar de estas vulnerabilidades, las mujeres pueden ser agentes importantes de cambio y juegan un papel en la conservación del medio ambiente, la resiliencia climática y en el desarrollo sostenible. La presentación concluye con un llamado a desarrollar investigaciones sobre estos temas interrelacionados para profundizar nuestra comprensión, especialmente en la región latinoamericana, así como a adoptar enfoques holísticos e interseccionales y fomentar la colaboración intersectorial para abordar las causas estructurales de este nexo.
Pathways to power in fragile settings: Rethinking women’s roles in agriculture and food systems
(Blog Post, 2025-04-25) Quisumbing, Agnes R.; Kyle, Jordan; Kosec, Katrina; Ragasa, Catherine
Research shows that women play pivotal roles in farming—across value chains, and in food systems as a whole. With harmful effects of climate change, conflict, forced migration, and other problems on the rise, many women around the world find themselves in increasingly fragile settings—creating new challenges in efforts to achieve gender equity and empowerment in food systems. An IFPRI-organized March 13 session at the NGO Forum on the 69th Commission on the Status of Women at United Nations Headquarters in New York highlighted recent research on different aspects of how women in fragile food systems can become empowered. Evidence shows that when equipped with tools, voice, and recognition, women act—not only to improve their own well-being but to strengthen resilience across households and communities.
From farm to table: Women at the agriculture-nutrition nexus
(Presentation, 2025-03-13) Quisumbing, Agnes R.; Kyle, Jordan; Kosec, Katrina; Ragasa, Catherine; Raghunathan, Kalyani; Kumar, Neha; Sawhey, Tinni; Gonzalez, Teresa; Madero, Ana; Mittrick, Caitlin; Myers, Emily; Rapada, Amica; Adida, Claire, L.; Mo, Cecilia Hyunjung; Matanock, Aila M.; Arriola, Leonardo; Adeyanju, Dolapo; Fisher, Rachel
Presentation titles: Women in the Agriculture-Nutrition Pathways How Can Anticipatory Action Programming Support Women? Improving Women’s Livelihoods and Gender Equality through Women’s and Men’s Leadership and Advocacy Trainings in Rural Nigeria Role of Policy in Agriculture-Nutrition-Empowerment Nexus At a session of the Civil Society Organizations and Nongovernmental Organizations Forum during the 69th Commission on the Status of Women, researchers from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) shared evidence and policy insights on women’s role in the agriculture-nutrition pathways in fragile settings. The presentations highlighted recent research on different aspects of how women might become empowered in fragile food systems: (1) through women’s self-help groups in India and health and nutrition; (2) through anticipatory action programming and humanitarian assistance in Nigeria and Nepal; (3) through advocacy trainings in Nigeria; and (4) through voice in the policymaking process for both agriculture and nutrition. Geographic scope: Regional, National Geographic Location: Regions: Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia Countries: • Nigeria – field research, leadership training, and policy applications • India – synthesis of impact evaluations, policy assessment tool applied • Nepal – application of gender framework • United States – location of the UN event in New York This reflects both the locations of implementation and impact and the event venue.
Guía técnica para el establecimiento de viveros comunitarios
(Manual, 2024-09-02) Diaz Forero, Oscar Eduardo; Durango Morales, Sandra Guisela; Calderon, Victor Hugo
The scarcity of plant material in rural areas is hindering the implementation of silvopastoral systems, which are crucial for livestock adaptation to climate change. This deficiency threatens animal production and welfare in the face of droughts and floods and negatively impacts ecosystems. Restoring areas degraded by deforestation is a vital opportunity, reducing the effects of unsustainable practices on forests and strategic ecosystems. The establishment of community nurseries emerges as an effective solution. These nurseries propagate native and agroforestry species, promoting biodiversity and facilitating biological corridors. They improve production systems by migrating towards more sustainable practices, mitigating vulnerability to climate change, and promoting carbon sequestration by integrating trees into livestock farms. In addition, community nurseries foster associativity between communities, strengthening social cohesion and self-management, training participants, and cultivating community leaders to coordinate activities, promoting inclusive and sustainable rural development. This technical guide details the key steps for establishing and operating community nurseries in the cattle-growing areas of San Martín Province, Perú. It is part of the commitment of the Alliance Bioversity & CIAT within the PERU-Hub project, which is focused on Silvopastoral Systems and sustainable landscape management.
With a little help: Young women farmers’ experiences in India
(Book Chapter, 2025) Srinivasan, Sharada; Narayanan, Sudha
We present four case studies of young women farmers in India, two each from Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. As outlined in the previous chapter, the case studies offer an in-depth view into how young women become farmers, their experiences as farmers and the challenges they face. They highlight similarities but also differences across the respondents. The concluding section draws implications from the four case studies to reflect on experiences of other young women farmers in this study but also what they illustrate of young women farmers’ experiences more broadly.
No country for young women farmers: A situation analysis for India
(Book Chapter, 2025) Narayanan, Sudha; Srinivasan, Sharada
In spite of their significant role in agriculture in India, women lack recognition as farmers and face structural barriers related to land ownership, access to resources and markets, and mobility, which are associated with high levels of gender discrimination and gender-based violence (Panda and Agarwal 2005; UNODC 2018). There is a stark absence of an intersectional analysis (based on age, disability, class, education) in the otherwise substantial body of scholarship on women in agriculture and the gender barriers that they encounter, tending instead to generalize a communal female experience. This lacuna is apparent in this current review of the situation of young women farmers in India. At the policy level, this silence is even more deafening; the predicament of young women farmers is something of a policy desert.
Empowering youth & transforming communities through job creation & nutritious beans in Kenya
(Blog Post, 2025-04-07) Ong'or, Dennis; Inyanji, Eileen; Rubyogo, Jean Claude; Waswa, Boaz; Mabeya, Justin; Mwiti, Emily; Maritim, Mary; Karanja, David
In Kenya, the dependency on bean imports and the underutilization of domestic production opportunities has led to significant economic and employment gaps in the country’s agricultural sector. Addressing this challenge, the project “Nutritious Bean Products for Decent Employment for Youth in Kenya (NBP-DEYK),” initiated in 2021 by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT in collaboration with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and other partners, sought to empower youth, especially young women, through the production and processing of high iron and zinc beans (HIB). The project aimed to create at least 500 job opportunities—120 newly created jobs and 380 improved jobs—by leveraging the potential of HIB in the bean value chain. By the end of 2024, Cherubet Foods alone had created 110 new jobs, with 92% of these positions filled by youth, and improved over 500 existing roles, benefiting farmers, processors, and traders. The project also fostered growth within local farmer cooperatives, with a notable increase in women’s participation. Gender and age disaggregation showed that 60% of the new jobs went to young women, and 29% to young men. With these successes, the project demonstrates the potential for youth and women empowerment through agriculture, sustainable job creation, and community resilience. The results underscore the importance of leveraging partnerships, innovation, and technology to scale and sustain youth empowerment and community development efforts in Kenya.
Gender transformative research from proposal writing to evaluation
(Presentation, 2025-02-05) Nchanji, Eileen; Lutomia, Cosmas; Compaore, Eveline
How to integrate Gender equality and social inclusion in proposal writing Where are we on the gender agenda Frameworks Diverse donor expectations Tools/guides Concrete examples How to apply Gender transformative approaches – tools and guidelines  Where we are  Gender transformative approaches – WorldFish/FAO, Gender Impact platform/GTA COP Gender transformative indicators Some concrete examples How to develop inclusive gender communication What to focus on Some concrete examples
CGIAR Research Initiative on Gender Equality: Annual Technical Report 2024
(Report, 2025-04) CGIAR Initiative on Gender Equality
SELEVER study: Endline survey
(Dataset, 2025-03-21) International Food Policy Research Institute
The Soutenir l’Exploitation Familiale pour Lancer l’Élevage des Volailles et Valoriser l’Économie Rurale (SELEVER) study was a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in rural Burkina Faso to evaluate the impact of an integrated agriculture-nutrition intervention on the diets, health, and nutritional status of women and children. The intervention package combined poultry value chain development, women’s empowerment initiatives, and a behavior change communication strategy to promote healthier diets and improved feeding, care, and hygiene practices. Data collection took place in rural communities across three regions—Boucle du Mouhoun, Centre-Ouest, and Haut-Bassins—over four rounds between March 2017 and August 2020. The baseline survey (Round 1) was conducted from March to June 2017, during the post-harvest season, and included a sample of 1,800 households. Follow-up 1 and Follow-up 2 (Rounds 2 and 3) were carried out during the lean season, with data collected in September–October 2017 and September–October 2019, respectively, from a subsample of 1,080 households. The endline survey (Round 4) took place from March to August 2020, with a temporary pause in data collection due to COVID-19 restrictions. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the intervention package in enhancing nutritional outcomes for women and children in the targeted communities. The data presented here are from the endline survey.
SELEVER study: Second follow-up survey
(Dataset, 2025-03-21) International Food Policy Research Institute
The Soutenir l’Exploitation Familiale pour Lancer l’Élevage des Volailles et Valoriser l’Économie Rurale (SELEVER) study was a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in rural Burkina Faso to evaluate the impact of an integrated agriculture-nutrition intervention on the diets, health, and nutritional status of women and children. The intervention package combined poultry value chain development, women’s empowerment initiatives, and a behavior change communication strategy to promote healthier diets and improved feeding, care, and hygiene practices. Data collection took place in rural communities across three regions—Boucle du Mouhoun, Centre-Ouest, and Haut-Bassins—over four rounds between March 2017 and August 2020. The baseline survey (Round 1) was conducted from March to June 2017, during the post-harvest season, and included a sample of 1,800 households. Follow-up 1 and Follow-up 2 (Rounds 2 and 3) were carried out during the lean season, with data collected in September–October 2017 and September–October 2019, respectively, from a subsample of 1,080 households. The endline survey (Round 4) took place from March to August 2020, with a temporary pause in data collection due to COVID-19 restrictions. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the intervention package in enhancing nutritional outcomes for women and children in the targeted communities. The data presented here are from the second follow-up survey.
SELEVER study: First follow-up survey
(Dataset, 2025-03-21) International Food Policy Research Institute
The Soutenir l’Exploitation Familiale pour Lancer l’Élevage des Volailles et Valoriser l’Économie Rurale (SELEVER) study was a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in rural Burkina Faso to evaluate the impact of an integrated agriculture-nutrition intervention on the diets, health, and nutritional status of women and children. The intervention package combined poultry value chain development, women’s empowerment initiatives, and a behavior change communication strategy to promote healthier diets and improved feeding, care, and hygiene practices. Data collection took place in rural communities across three regions—Boucle du Mouhoun, Centre-Ouest, and Haut-Bassins—over four rounds between March 2017 and August 2020. The baseline survey (Round 1) was conducted from March to June 2017, during the post-harvest season, and included a sample of 1,800 households. Follow-up 1 and Follow-up 2 (Rounds 2 and 3) were carried out during the lean season, with data collected in September–October 2017 and September–October 2019, respectively, from a subsample of 1,080 households. The endline survey (Round 4) took place from March to August 2020, with a temporary pause in data collection due to COVID-19 restrictions. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the intervention package in enhancing nutritional outcomes for women and children in the targeted communities. The data presented here are from the first follow-up survey.
SELEVER study: Baseline survey
(Dataset, 2025-03-21) International Food Policy Research Institute
The Soutenir l’Exploitation Familiale pour Lancer l’Élevage des Volailles et Valoriser l’Économie Rurale (SELEVER) study was a cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in rural Burkina Faso to evaluate the impact of an integrated agriculture-nutrition intervention on the diets, health, and nutritional status of women and children. The intervention package combined poultry value chain development, women’s empowerment initiatives, and a behavior change communication strategy to promote healthier diets and improved feeding, care, and hygiene practices. Data collection took place in rural communities across three regions—Boucle du Mouhoun, Centre-Ouest, and Haut-Bassins—over four rounds between March 2017 and August 2020. The baseline survey (Round 1) was conducted from March to June 2017, during the post-harvest season, and included a sample of 1,800 households. Follow-up 1 and Follow-up 2 (Rounds 2 and 3) were carried out during the lean season, with data collected in September–October 2017 and September–October 2019, respectively, from a subsample of 1,080 households. The endline survey (Round 4) took place from March to August 2020, with a temporary pause in data collection due to COVID-19 restrictions. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the intervention package in enhancing nutritional outcomes for women and children in the targeted communities. The data presented here are from the baseline survey.

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