Women's empowerment constitutes an important aspect of the development agenda. Although it is highly contextual in nature, empowerment literature so far has focussed on identifying factors associated with empowerment, neglecting the importance of understanding which empowerment resources and agency dimensions are more important for whom and under what contexts. This is important, because we cannot talk of empowerment for those who are not in a disempowered condition or who do not value it.

Malnutrition remains a key global challenge constraining social and economic development in most developing countries. Although women can play an important role in improving household diet quality, their participation is constrained by limited access to productive resources. Women’s empowerment in agriculture is a viable strategy for improving dietary quality, but investigations on the important type(s) of empowerment are inconclusive.

Diet quality is a critical determinant of human health and increasingly serves as a key indicator for food system sustainability. However, data on diets are limited, scattered, often project-dependent, and current data collection systems do not support high-frequency or consistent data flows. We piloted in Rwanda a data collection system, powered by the principles of citizen science, to acquire high frequency data on diets. The system was deployed through an unstructured supplementary service data platform, where respondents were invited to answer questions regarding their dietary intake.

This study investigated the trait preferences for cassava in the context of climate change and conflict stressors among value-chain actors in Nigeria to strengthen social inclusion and the community-resilience outcomes from breeding programs. Multi-stage sampling procedures were used to select and interview male and female value-chain participants in the Osun, Benue and Abia States. The results indicated that farmers preferred cassava traits such as drought tolerance, early bulking, multiple-product use and in-ground storability to strengthen resilience.

In many developing countries where farmers grow vegetatively propagated crops (VPCs), they are often unable
to increase on-farm productivity partly due to limited access to quality seeds. Yet, seed policy and legal
frameworks for VPCs in many countries show a limited consideration of the specific characteristics of the seed
systems for root, tuber and banana crops. Moreover, there is a lack of understanding of how the implementation
of current seed policy frameworks affect participation by men and women as either seed producers or seed

Food insecurity and malnutrition are challenges in rural Rwanda that are presumed to be affected by differential household socioeconomic status, but the relationship between food and nutrition security and socioeconomic status is not well-understood.

Wild food plants (WFPs) are often highly nutritious but under-consumed at the same time. This study aimed to document the diversity of WFPs, and assess perceptions, attitudes, and drivers of change in their consumption among Minangkabau and Mandailing women farmers in West Sumatra. We applied a mixed-method approach consisting of interviews with 200 women and focus group discussions with 68 participants. The study documented 106 WFPs (85 species), and Minangkabau were found to steward richer traditional knowledge than Mandailing.

The integration of gender concerns in crop breeding programs aims to improve the suitability and appeal of new varieties to both women and men, in response to concerns about unequal adoption of improved seed. However, few conventional breeding programs have sought to center social inclusion concerns. This community case study documents efforts to integrate gender into the maize-focused Seed Production Technology for Africa (SPTA) project using innovation history analysis drawing on project documents and the authors’ experiences.

The report highlights challenges faced by the agricultural sector in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Zambia, including productivity issues and food security concerns due to factors such as limited inputs, market access, and climate-related vulnerabilities. Post-harvest losses (PHL) are identified as a major obstacle for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) processors, stemming from inadequate infrastructure and poor handling methods.

Smallholder farmers in low- and medium-income countries lack sufficient access to agricultural production credit that can help them adopt new technologies and improve their farm production. Compared to men, women smallholder farmers face additional social, and economic barriers that further limit their credit access. Bundling agricultural credit with insurance, or risk contingent credit (RCC), provides a mechanism for addressing some of the credit access constraints and reducing credit rationing among smallholder farmers.

IFPRI is participating in the 2023 annual CGIAR Gender Research Conference. This conference is co-hosted by the CGIAR GENDER Impact Platform and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and will take place in New Delhi, India, on October 9-12, 2023.
Presentation and poster titles:
Cultural and economic barriers and opportunities for the participation of women in agricultural production systems: A case study in Guatemala
Armed conflict and gendered participation in agrifood systems: Survey evidence from 29 African countries