Commentary: building science and leadership skills in African women in agricultural research and development

Abstract

Women make essential contributions to agriculture making up 43 and 50%, respectively, of the agricultural labour force globally and that in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, this contribution is not translated directly into actual control over any economic benefits in production (FAO, 2011). Of those women in the least developed countries who report being economically active, 79% report agriculture as their primary economic activity (FAOSTAT). In some regions within Africa, women do contribute over 60% of the total time spent in agricultural activities (FAOSTAT, 2009 FAOSTAT, 2009, in: C. Doss (ed), If Women Hold up Half the Sky, How Much of the World's Food do they Produce? Paper prepared for 2010 FAO State of Food and Agriculture. FAO. FAOSTAT (available at http://faostat.fao.org/ ). ). A shortcoming of information on women's share of the agricultural labour is that the data available do not account for differences in number of hours worked. If men who are identified as part of the ‘economically active population in agriculture’ provide fewer hours of agricultural labour than women in the same sector, we could underestimate the importance of women. For example, some literature suggests that men in Africa work fewer hours than women, across all activities (Blackden and Wodon, 2006 Blackden C. M., Wodon Q. (eds), 2006, Gender, Time Use and Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa, World Bank Working Paper No. 73. ). Compared with their male counterparts women operate smaller farms, keep fewer livestock typically of smaller breeds and earn less from the livestock they own. They have less education and less access to agricultural information and extension services, use less credit and other financial services, and are much less likely to purchase inputs such as fertilizers, improved seeds and mechanical equipment (FAO, 2011 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 2011, The State of Food and Agriculture 2010–2011. Women in Agriculture Closing the Gender Gap for Development, FAO, Rome. ). Alderman et al. (1996 Alderman H., Haddad L., Udry C., 1996, Gender Differentials in Farm Productivity: Implications for Household Efficiency and Agricultural Policy, Food Consumption and Nutrition Division Discussion Paper 6, International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, DC. ) estimated that reducing inequalities in human capital, physical capital and current inputs between male and female farmers in SSA could potentially increase agricultural productivity by 10–20%. And for future agricultural research to produce meaningful changes, the needs, preferences, and constraints and differential roles of female farmers and women engaged in agricultural production must be recognized (Meinzen-Dick et al., 2010 Meinzen-Dick, R., Quisumbing, A., Behrman, J., Biermayr-Jenzano, P., Wilde, V., Noordeloos, M., Ragasa, C. and Beintema, N. 2010. Engendering Agricultural Research. IFPRI Discussion paper 00973.). In order to improve women's lives, for example, through the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, financial support is required, a need that has been well articulated by the recently established UN Women (Guardian News and Media Limited, 2011 Guardian News and Media Limited, 2011, UN Women Justice Report: Gender Equality Programmes Need Funding, guardian.co.uk, Wednesday, 6 July 2011, 12.30 BST. ). Failure to recognize the roles, differences and inequities between men and women poses a serious limitation to the effectiveness of the agricultural development agenda (World Bank et al., 2009 World Bank, The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). 2009. Gender and Agriculture Sourcebook, Washington, DC, USA: The World Bank. )