Gender is a cross-cutting theme that is important for each of the main CCAFS research themes and is relevant in all the sites. The main objective of the gender theme is to have a positive impact on social inclusion for the rural poor by providing relevant gender analyses for each of the four CCAFS themes (Ashby et al., 2012).
As described in the CCAFS gender strategy (p. 9), the objectives for gender analysis and research are to:
- Contribute to the design of processes, technologies and related policy and institutional frameworks for the adaptation of farming systems in the face of future climate uncertainties that reduce gender disparities in critical vulnerabilities, reduce female drudgery and improve incomes for resource-poor men and women Links to CCAFS theme on Long-Term Adaptation.
- Integrate consideration of gender differences in to the development and testing of improved climate information products and services and risk management innovations so that these produce benefits for resource-poor women producers and traders as well as men. Links to CCAFS Theme on Climate Risk Management.
- Evaluate selected organizational, policy and financial arrangements and farm-level agricultural mitigation practices to deliver benefits from mitigation activities to poor women as well as to men. Links to CCAFS Theme on Low Emissions Agriculture.
- Improve the gender-relevance of frameworks for policy analysis, databases, methods and ex ante impact assessment for planning responses to climate change in agriculture. Links to CCAFS Themes on Integration for Decision Making.
The Challenge
The gender equity gaps (such as access to agricultural resources and information) imply that men and women have different vulnerabilities to climate change and different adaptive capacities to deal with it. Furthermore, climate change has the potential to worsen poverty and to reinforce gender inequalities.
About our work
It is important to recognize gender differences and conduct gender research that will allow CCAFS researchers and partners to understand how to overcome such differences so that both men and women are included in intervention strategies.
First, it is important that sex-disaggregated data is collected to understand the gender disparities that affect the way poor men and women respond to climate change impacts on agriculture. In this first step, we must also recognize that women are not a homogeneous group and that there is a need to understand differences by ethnicity and socio-economic status as well as gender.
Next, this information needs to be used to design interventions that are socially inclusive; that take into account the needs of men, women and socially marginalized groups.
Finally to ensure that CCAFS is having an impact appropriate monitoring and evaluation is needed. CCAFS programs/projects should be socially inclusive and have a positive impact on the lives of women and other socially marginalized groups where they are implemented.
Key activities
The gender theme develops, collects and disseminates appropriate methods for addressing gender issues related to CCAFS research priorities. Furthermore, it employs strategies and approaches that enhance women’s active participation in CCAFS-related research, capacity building opportunities, policy engagement activities and events at local, national, regional and international levels.
- Village-level and organizational-level baseline survey reports with gender data
- Intra-household gender and climate change survey developed collaboratively by IFPRI, ILRI, and ICRAF and is currently being implemented in several sites (available soon)
- Joint development (with local partners) of impact pathways with explicit gender strategies and targets in all CCAFS sites
- Developing a working paper series highlighting significant CCAFS and CG gender research results
- Training courses and materials being developed on new gender research methods (both participatory/ qualitative and quantitative methods)
Key findings
- Men and women seek different kinds of information related to agriculture, weather, and food security from different sources.
- Climate change information should not be limited to “weather” (i.e. women mentioned need for information related to different types of seeds).
- Adaptation to climate change is gender-specific and support for adaptation has to be, too. We must take into account power relations and social inequalities; it is not a “technology” only issue.
- Natural resources and perception of them are socially constructions that differ by gender depending on socially defined roles and responsibilities of men and women.
- Adaptive technologies should not concentrate only on “major” crops; we must consider the crops important to women (and other social groups) as well.
- Smallholder farmers are changing agricultural practices due, at least in part, to changes they are observing in their climates and environments.
- Although agriculture is managed at the household level, men and women have different roles and are adopting different types of changes in agricultural practices depending on their roles.
- Women are less likely to adopt new practices because of financial or resource contstraints, and because of male domination in receiving extension services.
- Important gender disparities remain in terms of women’s ability to access and understand scientific forecast information.
- Male and female farmers have different perceptions about changes in climate, accounting for variations in their adaptation and coping strategies.
- Women farmers adopt new technologies and use them not only to enhance agricultural productivity but also to reduce drudgery and generate employment opportunities through collective action.
- There are gender differences in where and how information on agricultural technologies is obtained.
- Even when they are equally aware of technological options, women appear to have less access to and uptake of production technologies.
- Women, particularly when heading households, are disadvantaged in comparison with men in access to extension, and past and current extension approaches are failing them.