Evidence

Our evidence explainers are short, accessible summaries of notable gender research fit for fast consumption. Each explainer presents recommendations, implications and conclusions of use to development practitioners, policy-makers, researchers and others working with gender in food systems. Gaps in evidence, possible weaknesses and new areas to be investigated in future research are also highlighted.
Explore our growing series of evidence explainers below.
Evidence explainers


















Publication highlights

Advancing gender equality through agricultural and environmental research: Past, present, and future
Pyburn, Rhiannon, ed.; and van Eerdewijk, Anouka, ed. 2021. Advancing gender equality through agricultural and environmental research: Past, present, and future. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896293915

Conducting a systematic review: Methodology and steps
Leveraging Evidence for Access and Development. 2021. Conducting a systematic review: Methodology and steps. Chennai, India: LEAD at KREA University.

Gender in agriculture and food systems: An Evidence Gap Map

Exploring the intricate relationship between poverty, gender inequality and rural masculinity: A Case study from an Aquatic Agricultural System in Zambia
Understanding nutritional outcomes through gendered analysis of time-use patterns in semi-arid India

Knowledge exchange event: Good practices from the United Nations Rome-based Agencies for gender equality incentive and mainstreaming mechanisms
FAO, IFAD & WFP. 2021. Knowledge exchange event: Good practices from the United Nations Rome-based Agencies for gender equality incentive and mainstreaming mechanisms. Summary report. Rome, FAO. https://doi.org/10.4060/cb5797en

What works to enhance women’s agency
Chang, Wei, Lucía Díaz-Martin, Akshara Gopalan, Eleonora Guarnieri, Seema Jayachandran and Claire Walsh. 2020. What works to enhance women’s agency: Cross-cutting lessons from experimental and quasi-experimental studies. J-PAL working paper. Cambridge, MA: Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.

Enhancing women’s agency: cross-cutting lessons from experimental and quasi-experimental studies in low- and middle-income countries
J-PAL Evidence Review. 2020. “Enhancing women’s agency: Cross-cutting lessons from experimental and quasi-experimental studies in low- and middle-income countries.” Cambridge, MA: Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab.
Ladder of Power and Freedom: Qualitative Data Collection Tool to Understand Local Perceptions of Agency and Decision-Making
Petesch, P., and R. Bullock. 2018. “Ladder of Power and Freedom: Qualitative Data Collection Tool to Understand Local Perceptions of Agency and Decision-Making.” GENNOVATE Resources for Scientists and Research Teams, CIMMYT, Mexico City. https://hdl.handle.net/10883/19343

Conceptual Frameworks and Methodological Challenges in Measuring Empowerment: Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives
Narayan, D. 2005. “Conceptual Frameworks and Methodological Challenges.” In Measuring Empowerment: Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives, edited by D. Narayan, 3–38. Washington, DC: World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/7441
A Typology Analysis of Agricultural Empowerment Profiles in Rural Egypt with a Particular Focus on Women.
Dina Najjar & Aymen Frija & Aman El Garhi, 2018. "A Typology Analysis of Agricultural Empowerment Profiles in Rural Egypt with a Particular Focus on Women," Working Papers 1198, Economic Research Forum, revised 24 May 2018.
Assessing Women’s Empowerment: Towards a Conceptual Framework
Mosedale, S. 2005. “Assessing Women’s Empowerment: Towards a Conceptual Framework.” Journal of International Development 17 (2): 243–257. https://doi.org/10.1002/jid.1212
Development of the project-level Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro-WEAI).
Hazel Malapit, Agnes Quisumbing, Ruth Meinzen-Dick, Greg, Seymour, Elena M. Martinez, Jessica Heckert, Deborah Rubin, Ana Vaz, Kathryn M. Yount, Development of the project-level Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro-WEAI), World Development, Volume 122, 2019,
Pages 675-692,
ISSN 0305-750X,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.06.018.

The Abbreviated Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (A-WEAI)
Malapit, Hazel J.; Kovarik, Chiara; Sproule, Kathryn; Meinzen-Dick, Ruth Suseela; and Quisumbing, Agnes R. 2020. Instructional guide on the abbreviated Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (A-WEAI). Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). http://ebrary.ifpri.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15738coll2/id/129719
Using Internal Evaluations to Measure Organisational Impact: A Meta-Analysis of Oxfam’s Women’s Empowerment Projects
Lombardini, S., and K. McCollum. 2018. ‘Using Internal Evaluations to Measure Organisational Impact: A Meta-Analysis of Oxfam’s Women’s Empowerment Projects.” Journal of Development Effectiveness 10 (1): 145–170. https://doi.org/10.1080/19439342.2017.1377750
Aspirations and Women’s Empowerment: Evidence from Kyrgyzstan
Kosec, Katrina; Akramov, Kamiljon T.; Mirkasimov, Bakhrom; and Song, Jie. 2018. Aspirations and women’s empowerment: Evidence from Kyrgyzstan. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1786. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). http://ebrary.ifpri.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15738coll2/id/133033
Resources, Agency, Achievements: Reflections on the Measurement of Women’s Empowerment
Kabeer, N. 1999. “Resources, Agency, Achievements: Reflections on the Measurement of Women’s Empowerment.” Development and Change 30: 435–464. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-7660.00125

How do agricultural development projects empower women? Linking strategies with expected outcomes.
Johnson, N., M. Balagamwala, C. Pinkstaff, S. Theis, R. Meinzen-Dick, A. Quisumbing. 2018. “How Do Agricultural Development Projects Empower Women? Linking Strategies with Expected Outcomes.” Journal of Gender, Agriculture and Food Security 3 (2): 1–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.293596
Intimate Partner Violence: Causes and Prevention
Jewkes, R. 2002. “Intimate Partner Violence: Causes and Prevention.” The Lancet 359 (9315): 1423–1429. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(02)08357-5

Measuring Gender Transformative Change: A Review of Literature and Promising Practices
Hillenbrand, E., N. Karim, P. Mohanraj, D. Wu. 2015. “Measuring Gender Transformative Change: A Review of Literature and Promising Practices.” Working Paper, CARE USA, Atlanta, GA.
The Women’s Empowerment in Livestock Index
Galiè, A., Teufel, N., Korir, L. et al. The Women’s Empowerment in Livestock Index. Soc Indic Res 142, 799–825 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-018-1934-z
The State of Food and Agriculture. Women in Agriculture: Closing the Gender Gap for Development
FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations). 2011. The State of Food and Agriculture. Women in Agriculture: Closing the Gender Gap for Development. Rome: FAO
Women’s Empowerment: What Works?
Cornwall, A. 2016. “Women’s Empowerment: What Works?” Journal of International Development 28 (3): 342–359. https://doi.org/10.1002/jid.3210
Learning about Women’s Empowerment in the Context of Development Projects: Do the Figures Tell Us Enough?
To cite this article: Jane Carter, Sarah Byrne, Kai Schrader, Humayun Kabir, Zenebe Bashaw Uraguchi, Bhanu Pandit, Badri Manandhar, Merita Barileva, Norbert Pijls & Pascal Fendrich (2014) Learning about women's empowerment in the context of development projects: do the figures tell us enough?, Gender & Development, 22:2, 327-349, DOI: 10.1080/13552074.2014.920986.

Designing a Common Gender Indicator Framework for CARE’s Pathways Program
CARE. 2015. Designing a Common Gender Indicator Framework for CARE’s Pathways Program. Atlanta, GA: CARE USA. https://www.fsnnetwork.org/resource/designing-common-gender-indicator-framework-cares-pathways-program

Capturing Change in Women’s Realities: A Critical Overview of Current Monitoring & Evaluation Frameworks and Approaches
Batliwala, S., and A. Pittman. 2010. “Capturing Change in Women’s Realities: A Critical Overview of Current Monitoring & Evaluation Frameworks and Approaches.” Toronto: AWID. https://www.awid.org/publications/capturing-change-womens-realities
Taking the Power out of Empowerment: An Experiential Account
Batliwala, S. 2007. “Taking the Power out of Empowerment: An Experiential Account.” Development in Practice 17 (4–5): 557–565. https://www.jstor.org/stable/25548253
Financial inclusion and microfinance
Mader, P., and S. Morvant-Roux. 2019. “Financial inclusion and microfinance.” In Handbook of Social Policy and Development, edited by Midgley, J., Surender, R., and L. Alfers, 411–30. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781785368431.00030.

Impact of financial inclusion in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A systematic review of reviews. International Development, Methods.
Duvendack, M., and P. Mader. 2019. “Impact of financial inclusion in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A systematic review of reviews. International Development, Methods.” Oslo, Norway: Campbell Collaboration. https://doi.org/10.4073/csr.2019.2
Impact of financial inclusion in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A systematic review of reviews. International Development, Methods
Duvendack, M., and P. Mader. 2020. “Impact of financial inclusion in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A systematic review of reviews. International Development, Methods.” Journal of Economic Surveys 34 (3): 594–629. https://doi.org/10.1111/joes.12367.

The impact of agricultural and household technologies on women: A conceptual and quantitative analysis in Burkina Faso
Lawrence, P. G., Sanders, J. H., and S. Ramaswamy. 1999. “The impact of agricultural and household technologies on women: A conceptual and quantitative analysis in Burkina Faso.” Agricultural Economics 20 (3): 203-14. https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/174976

Intrahousehold preference heterogeneity and demand for labor-saving agricultural technology: The case of mechanical rice transplanting in India
Gulati, Kajal; Ward, Patrick S.; Lybbert, Travis J.; and Spielman, David J. 2019. Intrahousehold preference heterogeneity and demand for labor-saving agricultural technology: The case of mechanical rice transplanting in India. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1880. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
Designing Agricultural Technology for African Women Farmers: Lessons from 25 Years of Experience
Cheryl R Doss, “Designing Agricultural Technology for African Women Farmers: Lessons from 25 Years of Experience”, World Development, Volume 29, Issue 12, 2001, Pages 2075-2092, ISSN 0305-750X, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-750X(01)00088-2.

Technology characteristics, farmers’ perceptions and adoption decisions: A Tobit model application in Sierra Leone
Adesina, A. A., and M. M. Zinnah. 1993. “Technology characteristics, farmers’ perceptions and adoption decisions: A Tobit model application in Sierra Leone.” Agricultural Economics 09 (4): 297–311.
A systematic review of labor-saving technologies: Implications for women in agriculture
Vemireddy, Vidya, and Anjali Choudhary. 2021. "A systematic review of labor-saving technologies: Implications for women in agriculture. " Global Food Security 29 (100541). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2021.100541.

Male outmigration and women’s work and empowerment in agriculture: the case of Nepal and Senegal
World Bank Group; Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 2018. Male Outmigration and Women's Work and Empowerment in Agriculture : The Case of Nepal and Senegal. World Bank, Washington, DC. © World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/30066 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.

Women, irrigation and social norms in Egypt:
The role of rural-urban migration in the structural transformation of Sub-Saharan Africa.

What we were running from is what we’re facing again’: examining the paradox of migration as a livelihood improvement strategy among migrant women farmers in the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana
Jemima Nomunume Baada, Bipasha Baruah & Isaac Luginaah (2019) ‘What we were running from is what we’re facing again’: examining the paradox of migration as a livelihood improvement strategy among migrant women farmers in the Brong-Ahafo Region of Ghana, Migration and Development, 8:3, 448-471, DOI: 10.1080/21632324.2019.1573564

Human mobility in response to rainfall variability: opportunities for migration as a successful adaptation strategy in eight case studies
Tamer Afifi, Andrea Milan, Benjamin Etzold, Benjamin Schraven, Christina Rademacher-Schulz, Patrick Sakdapolrak, Alexander Reif, Kees van der Geest & Koko Warner (2016) Human mobility in response to rainfall variability: opportunities for migration as a successful adaptation strategy in eight case studies, Migration and Development, 5:2, 254-274, DOI: 10.1080/21632324.2015.1022974
How do migration remittances affect rural livelihoods in drylands?
Abdelali-Martini, M. and R. Hamza. 2014. “How do migration remittances affect rural livelihoods in drylands?” Journal of International Development 26 (4), 454–70
https://doi.org/10.1002/jid.2896
Does the feminisation of agricultural labour empower women? Insights from female labour contractors and workers in northwest Syria
Malika Abdelali‐Martini, Jennie Dey de Pryck, Does the Feminisation of Agricultural Labour Empower Women? Insights from Female Labour Contractors and Workers in Northwest Syria, Journal of International Development, 10.1002/jid.3007, 27, 7, (898-916), (2014). Wiley Online Library
Towards a feminization of agricultural labour in Northwest Syria
Malika Abdelali-Martini, Patricia Goldey, Gwyn Jones & Elizabeth Bailey (2003) Towards a Feminization of Agricultural Labour in Northwest Syria, The Journal of Peasant Studies, 30:2, 71-94, DOI: 10.1080/03066150412331311139

Introducing global food 50/50: Brief prepared for the UN Food Systems Pre-Summit 2021
Tanaka, Sonja; and Njuki, Jemimah. 2021. Introducing global food 50/50: Brief prepared for the UN Food Systems Pre-Summit 2021. Washington, DC: Global Health 50/50; and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134480
Collective action within the household: Insights from natural resource management
Cheryl R. Doss, Ruth Meinzen-Dick,
Collective Action within the Household: Insights from Natural Resource Management,
World Development,
Volume 74,
2015,
Pages 171-183,
ISSN 0305-750X,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2015.05.001.
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X15001102)
Bringing analysis of gender and social-ecological resilience together in small-scale fisheries research: challenges and opportunities.
Kawarazuka, N., C. Locke, C. McDougall, P. Kantor, and M. Morgan. 2017. Bringing analysis of gender and social-ecological resilience together in small-scale fisheries research: challenges and opportunities. Ambio 46:201-213.
Gender integration in livestock and fisheries value chains: emerging good practices from analysis to action

Woman in agriculture, and climate risks: hotspots for development
Linking smallholder farmers to markets, gender and intra-household dynamics: Does the choice of commodity matter?
The Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index

Masculinities in Forests: Representations of Diversity

Gender capacity development and organizational culture change in the CGIAR Research Program on Aquatic Agricultural Systems: A conceptual framework

Gender and social targeting in plant breeding

Gender norms, agency, and innovation in agriculture and natural resource management: the GENNOVATE methodology
Gender inequalities in ownership and control of land in Africa: myth and reality
Intensifying Inequality? Gendered Trends in Commercializing and Diversifying Smallholder Farming Systems in East Africa
Gender and formalization of native communities in the Peruvian Amazon
Gender and Forest, Tree and Agroforestry Value Chains: Evidence from Literature
Water rights, gender, and poverty alleviation. Inclusion and exclusion of women and men smallholders in public irrigation infrastructure development
Van Koppen, B. Water rights, gender, and poverty alleviation. Inclusion and exclusion of women and men smallholders in public irrigation infrastructure development. Agriculture and Human Values 15, 361–374 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007537119163
Gender and Farmer Preferences for Varietal Traits: Evidence and Issues for Crop Improvement
Male-female differences in agricultural productivity: methodological issues and empirical evidence
Quisumbing Agnes R., 'Male-female differences in agricultural productivity: methodological issues and empirical evidence', World Development 24, IFPRI, 1996
Identifying women farmers: Informal gender norms as institutional barriers to recognizing womens contributions to agriculture
Twyman, Jennifer; Muriel, Juliana; García, María Alejandra. 2015. Identifying women farmers: Informal gender norms as institutional barriers to recognizing women’s contributions to agriculture. Journal of Gender, Agriculture and Food Security 1(2): 1-17.
Women in agriculture: Four myths
Doss, Cheryl; Meinzen-Dick, Ruth Suseela; Quisumbing, Agnes R.; and Theis, Sophie. 2018. Women in agriculture: Four myths. Global Food Security 16(March 2018): 69-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2017.10.001

Assessing the impact of participatory research in rice breeding on poor rice farming households with emphasis on women farmers: a case study in eastern Uttar Pradesh, India
Women's participation in forest management: a cross-country analysis
Supporting women farmers in a changing climate: five policy lessons
