CIMMYT Posters
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/130155
Browse
Recent Submissions
Item Youth and women quality centers change behavior and improve access to dryland crop seed(Poster, 2024-02) Ojiewo, Chris; Gichuru, Lilian; Lengewa, CatherineItem Excluding the marginalized? Exploring the livelihood and inequality implications of herbicide diffusion in eastern India(Poster, 2023-10-10) Mkondiwa, Maxwell; Krishna, Vijesh V.; Khed, Vijayalaxmi D.The increasing agricultural wages in rural India have lent significant R&D and policy support for laborsaving agricultural technologies. While some are heralded as ‘game changers’ in achieving food sufficiency goals, less research is devoted to understanding whether farmer adoption of these technologies worsens economic inequalities. We hypothesize that the rapid diffusion of laborsaving agricultural technologies could result in a reduction in employment and loss of a key source of livelihood for the nonfarming rural poor, especially women from socially marginalized groups. Analyzing two datasets (2,725 households) collected from the Bihar state of India in 2021– 22, we document empirical, stylized facts on the intersectionality of gender and caste on effects of a laborsaving technology—chemical weeding. We then develop a task-based conceptual framework in which social norms on tasks performed by women and marginalized caste groups are examined to understand the technology impacts on inequality. This framework helps in developing the relevant policy actions toward FROM RESEARCH TO IMPACT, October 2023 49 more inclusive innovation. We observe that herbicide adoption has increased by 50%age points in the past decade. A large share of the herbicide application labor is provided by male laborers replacing hand weeding labor, which is supplied mostly by female laborers from marginalized caste groups. Herbicide adoption has reduced the labor force participation of women from marginalized castes. We do not observe reinstitution of women hired laborers in other on-farm tasks (e.g., land preparation, sowing). There is no evidence of them getting better opportunities in the nonfarm sector or they have the necessary skillsets.Item What agricultural transition means for women in man-headed households in South Asia: An in-depth exploration of intrahousehold evaluation processes(Poster, 2023-10-10) Karki, Emma; Chaudhary, Anjana; Sharma, Akriti; Timsina, Pragya; Sharma, Rama; Leipzig, Ava; Brown, BrendanWomen’s participation in agriculture is increasing in the Eastern Gangetic Plains due to various external drivers, but they continue to play a limited role in agricultural decision-making. Yet there is limited understanding of the perspectives of spouses in a men-headed household post-technology adoption. To understand spouses’ experiences after technology adoption, we conduct qualitative research with household heads and their spouses in 47 households to understand how they perceive recent adoption of conservation agriculture to have affected their socioeconomic status and roles in agricultural production. Both household heads and their spouses tended to prioritize technological benefits, status change, changing roles and responsibilities at a household level as important contributions/ aspects of new conservation agriculture practices. However, upon deeper inspection, women had limited mechanistic understanding compared to men and their use of freed time was situation-dependent and with location-specific opportunities for women to upskill. Efforts to reduce the information gap and incorporating their technological preferences and needs in future promotional activities are necessary to improve women’s participation in decision-making. Similarly, opportunities to upskill can provide potential opportunities to women to realize their personal aspirations and have a positive influence on their household and community.Item Strength in diversity: Designing on-farm trials to guide gender-intentional maize breeding(Poster, 2023-10-10) Euler, Michael; Zaman-Allah, Mainassara; Cairns, Jill E.; Marenya, PaswelStrengthening gender-intentionality in maize breeding is one potential pathway to closing improved variety adoption and productivity gaps between femaleand male-managed maize plots, and to foster social inclusion in agricultural development. The breeding of gender-intentional maize varieties requires a better understanding of the dynamics of gender roles in maize production systems, gender-based differences in trait preferences and maize seed demand. Despite a growing number of studies, the evidence on genderdifferentiated preferences for maize varieties remains inconclusive. This study uses data from on-farm trials with Stage 1 maize breeding material conducted on 800 smallholder farms in Kenya and Zimbabwe to assess how dynamics in gender roles in maize production affect gender-differentiated preferences for tested maize lines on-farm. On-farm trials with earlystage breeding material allow capturing spatial and temporal heterogeneity across target population of environments, including differences in management practices among farms and between female- and malemanaged plots. Preferences for agronomic and enduse traits, and gender roles in maize production were collected through individual surveys with the female and male household heads. We hypothesize that there are gender-based differences in preferences for tested maize lines, and that these differences are mediated by socioeconomic and agro-ecological context variables, as well as biotic and abiotic stress factors experienced during the growing season. Results are expected to guide product development of regional maize breeding programs, and to strengthen their adaptation to changing maize-growing environments in sub-Saharan Africa.Item Necessity as a driver in bending agricultural gender norms in the Eastern Gangetic Plains of South Asia(Poster, 2023-10-10) Timsina, Pragya; Chaudhary, Anjana; Sharma, Akriti; Karki, Emma; Suri, Bhavya; Brown, BrendanThe majority of farmers in the rural global South continue to rely on agriculture for a living, either directly or indirectly. Despite accounting for nearly half of the world’s farmers, women face gender-specific challenges such as deeply ingrained cultural and social norms that limit their access to land, assets, financial markets, agricultural training, and information. This study investigates how necessity is becoming one of the major drivers in the bending of agricultural gender norms, using semi-structured interviews with farmers in the Eastern Gangetic Plains. As a result of labor shortages, the absence of male household members due to emigration, or their involvement in other lucrative income-generating livelihood activities, we discovered that women’s roles and participation in agriculture are adjusted on a needs basis. Women’s involvement in agriculture was not motivated by a willingness or desire to work in agriculture, but rather by a necessity arising from their financial situation. Thus, this study focuses on the growing trend of bending gender norms, and makes recommendations for increasing women’s participation and scope in future agriculture development initiatives through gender-equitable policies and interventions.Item Agency and time poverty: Linking decision-making powers and leisure time of male and female farmers of Central India(Poster, 2023-10-10) Khed, Vijayalaxmi D.; Krishna, Vijesh V.The present study examines the gender differences in workload and decision-making as well as analyzing the influence of decision-making and other socioeconomic factors on the time use of male and female farmers of central India. Analyzing individual-level data collected in 2019 (347 wheat farming households), we found significant gender differences in the total number of work hours, patterns of time use, and the power to make decisions within the household. Men and women participate equally in productive activities, and women spend more time in domestic work. Land ownership by women and belonging to marginalized castes are found associated with a higher workload for female respondents. These factors have an insignificant effect on the amount of work and leisure time of the male respondents. Irrespective of their higher workload, women’s involvement in decision-making is limited. The decisions over different farming and nonfarming activities and the use of income generated from these activities are made predominantly by the male household head across caste groups. We also observe a trade-off between leisure time for women and their involvement in household-level decision-making. Women with agency had less leisure time than others. Our paper concludes that the decision-making agency for women in the study area comes at a cost, unlike in the case of men, due to the existence of patriarchal social norms. Our study findings create a richer picture of rural women’s nexuses of time poverty and decisionmaking, which have implications for the development and diffusion of laborsaving technologies in agriculture.