Gender specific perceptions and adoption of the climate-smart push-pull technology in eastern Africa

Abstract

The performance of the agricultural sector in many developing countries has been rated as below average, in particular the staple cereal crops whose productivity is limited by both biotic and abiotic factors. Furthermore, underperformance by the agricultural sector has in part been attributed to the inability of women to access resources, yet they represent a crucial resource in agriculture and the rural economy through their roles as farmers and entrepreneurs. These challenges can be overcome by understanding gender roles and perceptions, and aligning innovations to fit the preferences of specific gender. This study evaluated gender specific perceptions and the extent of adoption of a climate-smart push–pull technology for controlling stemborers, African witch weed (Striga spp.), and improving soil fertility in drier agro-ecological zones where these constraints are quickly spreading. The findings show that slightly higher percentage of women (98.6%) perceived the technology as effective compared to men (96.7%). Women also highly rated the beneficial attributes of the technology such as increased cereal production (97.3% of the women vs 94.6% of men), decline in Striga spp. weed (97.2% women vs 92.4% of men), increase in soil fertility (95.9% of women vs 90% of men), increase in fodder production (94.1% of women vs 91.3% of men) and increase in cereal and fodder production even with drought (82.3% of women vs 66.5% of men). The findings show that, women who are the most vulnerable of the smallholder farmers, are bound to benefit from the technology, mostly because its attributes favors their (women) preferences.