Gender and pro-poor agricultural growth: nonfarm/farm linkages and village dynamics in sub-Saharan Africa

The project addresses Theme I: Agriculture and growth. The project aims to analyse broad based agricultural growth from a gender perspective and to situate these processes locally, against the backdrop of specific national policies and broader demographic, socio-economic and climate related changes. The objective of the study is to assess under what social and institutional conditions pro-poor agricultural growth entrenches or redresses gender based differences in access to agrarian resources and what consequences this has for linkages to the nonfarm sector. Three key research questions guide inquiry:

1. How can the consequences of gender differentiated access to productive and institutional resources during processes of broad based agricultural growth be understood?
2. How can linkages between agriculture and the nonfarm sector be analysed from a gender perspective, given that nonfarm income may be important in alleviating inferior access to agrarian resources among women in particular?
3. What village level characteristics are relevant to understanding the dynamics of broad based agricultural growth and nonfarm/farm interaction from a gender perspective?

The project will use a mixed-methods, longitudinal, multi-scalar approach which enables comparison of growth dynamics across countries, regions, villages and households, while situating individuals within households. The method addresses the lack of comparative data on gender and growth, village level institutions and intra-household relationships through combining quantitative and qualitative data collection. The quantitative data builds on existing data from Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Tanzania and Zambia collected in 2002 and 2008, covering close to 4000 households in 84 villages. A third round of quantitative data is currently being collected in Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Zambia and funding is applied for to cover data collection also in Tanzania and Mozambique. The 2013/2014 cross-section would cover 2466 households in 56 villages and two rounds of panel data for six countries. This will address a research gap in relation to the lack of longitudinal data. The sustainability of growth processes will therefore be possible to document. The quantitative data will enable assessing the existence and drivers of pro-poor agricultural growth, the location of such dynamics to particular regions and villages and whether female headed households are discriminated against in these processes. Qualitative data on social and institutional village characteristics as well as intra-household gender dynamics will be collected in villages involved in pro-poor agricultural growth as well as villages having experienced withdrawal from agricultural markets. The purpose is to document village level institutional frameworks with respect to gendered access to productive resources within and outside agriculture.

Academic results will be disseminated through articles in world leading, peer reviewed journals, research reports published on the project website and research briefs circulated through ELDIS and the project advisors. Non-academic stakeholder involvement is ensured through an inaugural as well as concluding stakeholder workshop. Results will be popularized through written reports directed towards non-academic stakeholders and oral presentations in events organized by such stakeholders.

Who will benefit from this research?
The proposed study would be of benefit to an academic as well as a non-academic audience. Academic beneficiaries include researchers involved in research on agricultural and rural development as well as livelihoods and gender research in developing country contexts. Researchers within interdisciplinary fields involved in mixed methods research outside these specific areas may also benefit. Academic users are found both within Universities at national, European (France and the UK) and global level (mainly inAfrica and the US), but also within the research institutes of the CGIAR-system (IFPRI; IITA)

Potential non-academic users are found among multi-lateral donors involved in rural development, (IFAD, the World Bank) as well as those engaged in agricultural development specifically (FAO). Bilateral donors (Swedish Sida; NORAD; DFID) and the wider Global Donor platform for Rural Development also include possible non-academic users. To these should be added regional, African constellations, such as the AU/NEPAD and AGRA. Civil society organisations, such as NGO networks in both Europe and Africa are also potential beneficiaries.

How will they benefit from this research?
Ideally, the project would provide insights that could contribute to redressing potential discrimination of women in processes of broad based agricultural growth, while also contributing to economic growth in itself through addressing gender based impediments to low agricultural productivity.

What will be done to ensure that they have the opportunity to benefit from this activity?
Earlier research results have been popularized to inform the policy debate through dialogues with the type of stakeholders identified above, something which will continue within the realm of the proposed project.