AN INTEGRATED APPROACH FOR GENDER IN FARMING SYSTEMS:AWAY FORWARD FOR TRANSFORMATION AND EQUITY

Abstract

Conceptual lock has resulted in the failure of the agricultural extension and advisory services to properly serve women in farming systems. Women’s needs as farmers are to be included in the development agenda in order to mainstreaming gender in farming systems, since women contribute a large percentage to total family income. Focusing on access is not enough ensuring women as well as men can implement what they learn requires a conceptual model in order to achieve gender equality. Integration of gender indicators are essential to make farming systems analysis more gender sensitive. Gender based farming systems analysis could be used to simulate the effects of a change in agricultural practices on gender relations, either with the aim to do no harm or with the objective to achieve more gender equality. Specific needs of the farmers can be targeted and agricultural scientists, technologists and extensionists can be benefited from the knowledge of female farmers and the designed interventions have a higher chance to be implemented effectively. Government policies and programs should be revised to address women’s practical and strategic needs for gender transformative change. One of the main tasks of a gender-responsive/transformative research and extension farming systems approaches is to capture, record, replicate, and upscale such methodologies to effect broader social change.