Gender, livestock and asset ownership

This brief is an excerpt from the book ‘Bridging the Gender Gap: Women, Livestock Ownership and Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa’, produced by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) with funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (www.idrc.ca). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ILRI or IDRC. This is one of a series of six briefs on livestock and gender, designed and produced by WRENmedia (www.wrenmedia.co.uk) for IDRC

Gender responsive livestock research

This brief is an excerpt from the book ‘Bridging the Gender Gap: Women, Livestock Ownership and Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa’, produced by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) with funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (www.idrc.ca). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ILRI or IDRC. This is one of a series of six briefs on livestock and gender, designed and produced by WRENmedia (www.wrenmedia.co.uk) for IDRC

Women, livestock markets and income management

This brief is an excerpt from the book ‘Bridging the Gender Gap: Women, Livestock Ownership and Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa’, produced by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) with funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (www.idrc.ca). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ILRI or IDRC. This is one of a series of six briefs on livestock and gender, designed and produced by WRENmedia (www.wrenmedia.co.uk) for IDRC

Women's participation in livestock markets

This brief is an excerpt from the book ‘Bridging the Gender Gap: Women, Livestock Ownership and Markets in Eastern and Southern Africa’, produced by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) with funding from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (www.idrc.ca). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ILRI or IDRC. This is one of a series of six briefs on livestock and gender, designed and produced by WRENmedia (www.wrenmedia.co.uk) for IDRC

Productivity Differences between Male and Female Managed Farms in the Eastern and Central Highlands of Kenya

This study was carried out in an agroforestry farming system in the central highlands of Kenya. The purpose of the study was to compare the productivity and technical efficiency of male and female managed farms. The study also sought to investigate the sources of differences in the Total Value Product and the technical efficiency of farms. Using a female dummy, the study found no evidence of differences in total value product between male and female managed farms. Male managed farms were however more technically efficient than female managed farms. The highest proportion of farms in the lowest bracket of efficiency levels was female managed farms. The total value product was found to be positively affected by age of the farmer, female labour and inputs while it was negatively affected by land size.Farm Management, Labor and Human Capital,

Relationship between Social Capital and Livelihood Enhancing Capitals among Smallholder Farmers in Uganda

Social capital is an important characteristic of a community and is one of the components of the asset pentagon of the sustainable livelihood framework. The study aimed at assessing the levels and dimensions of social capital and how social capital influences other livelihood capitals. A Cross-sectional survey of a random sample of 208 households was conducted in Masindi and Hoima Districts in Uganda to assess the current livelihood conditions and strategies for improving rural livelihoods. An Index of social capital was generated using density of group membership and three levels of social capital where generated i.e. high, medium and low. Two dimensions of social capital (bonding and bridging) were considered. Results showed that households with high and medium social capital had enhanced skills to solve problems, do research and bargain with middle men. Social capital empowered more women to participate in decision making, fostered asset base creation and use of natural resource management technologies. There was a significant difference between level of social capital and participation in collective farming. Households with high social capital rated highly the community level of trust, reciprocity, and women’s confidence. However, there was no significant effect of social capital on household income. In conclusion, there was a positive relationship between level and dimension of social capital and access to livelihood assets implying that strengthening social capital is a powerful way to improve communities and requires consistent and effective approaches to build and reinforce the social and human capital.Relationship, Social Capital, Livelihood Capitals, Smallholder Farmers, Agricultural Finance, Consumer/Household Economics, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Labor and Human Capital, Marketing, Production Economics, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Promoting effective collective marketing in the context of integrated agricultural research for development in sub saharan Africa

Recent changes in world markets, trade liberalisation and price decontrol have left smallholder farmers more vulnerable to the vagaries of market forces. Constraints such as poor technology, weak organisational structures and high transaction costs due to long and inefficient supply chain means that smallholders cannot compete with large corporations. Collective action which has been successfully applied within natural resources management if properly institutionalised among smallholder farmers can improve their marketing in a number of ways. It can reduce transaction costs of taking produce to the market; increase the smallholders’ bargaining power and enable them to access services that private sector or government are not readily willing to investigate. This paper uses the Sub Saharan Africa Challenge Programme panel data to investigate enabling factors for collective marketing. Based on these factors the paper discusses how Integrated Agriculture Research for Development (IAR4D) can be fashioned to improve upon collective marketing among smallholder farmers in Sub Saharan Africa

Linking smallholder farmers to markets, gender and intra-household dynamics: Does the choice of commodity matter?

Linking smallholder farmers to markets and making markets work for the poor is increasingly becoming an important part of the global research and development agenda. Organizations have used various strategies to link farmers to markets. These approaches have mainly been evaluated for their potential to increase participation in markets and household incomes. The evaluations have assumed a unitary household where income and resources are pooled and allocated according to a joint utility function. In most households, however, income is rarely pooled and neither are resources jointly allocated. This article uses data from Malawi and Uganda to analyze what influences income distribution between men and women, focusing on the type of commodity, type of market and approaches used. The results indicate that commodities generating lower average revenues are more likely to be controlled by women, whereas men control commodities that are high revenue generators, often sold in formal markets