Decentralization and rural service delivery in Uganda:

Decentralization, Development strategies, rural service delivery,

Enhancing the Glopan food systems framework by integrating gender : relevance for women in African agriculture

Globally, gender inequalities constrain food security, with women often disproportionately affected. Women play a fundamental role in household food and nutrition security. The multiple roles women play in various areas of the food system are not always recognised. This oversight emerges from an overemphasis on one aspect of the food system, without considering how this area might affect or be affected by another aspect. This study aimed to draw on international commitments and treaties using content analysis to enhance the Global Panel on Agriculture and Food Security food systems framework by integrating a gender perspective. The study found that generally, there is a consensus on specific actions that can be taken to advance gender equality at specific stages of the food system. However, governance and social systems constraints that are not necessarily part of the food system, but have a significant bearing on men and women’s capacity to effectively participate in the food system, need to be addressed. While the proposed conceptual framework has some limitations, it offers a foundation on which researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders can begin conceptualising the interconnectedness of gender barriers in the food system.https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainabilitydm2022Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural DevelopmentCenter for the Advancement of Scholarshi

Engendering agricultural research : needs, gaps and opportunities for gender training in East Africa - final technical report

The report summarizes and reviews the study which assessed the capacity of agricultural organisations to conduct gender responsive research. It analyzed the institutional environment in Uganda and Rwanda, including drivers and barriers to gender responsiveness. It assessed the level of application of gender by individual researchers, and made recommendations for promoting gender responsiveness within agricultural research organizations. It also provides a framework for monitoring and evaluating gender responsive agricultural research processes. The study focused on two national research organisations: the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO, Uganda) and Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) respectively

Towards gender responsive agricultural research : needs, gaps, and opportunities for gender training and institutional transformation in East Africa

The study was undertaken in Uganda and Rwanda and focused on two national research organisations: the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) and Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) respectively. The report analyzes gender training as it pertains to NARO and RAB. Access to gender training was found to be low. Most of the training efforts were planned and facilitated by other organizations. Both NARO and RAB had limited capacity to conduct gender responsive research. Both countries lack relevant institutional incentives and accountability systems. These factors undermine priorities attached to gender responsive agricultural research

Tracking the gender responsiveness of agricultural research across the research cycle: a monitoring and evaluation framework tested in Uganda and Rwanda

There is widespread need for gender-responsive agricultural research, yet the question of how this kind of research can be implemented and its success measured needs further interrogation. This paper presents a framework, developed on the basis of literature and validated by experts, for tracking the gender responsiveness of agricultural research throughout the research cycle, from the research plan to the dissemination of research findings. The framework was tested in Uganda and Rwanda on 14 research projects considered to be gender-responsive. Scores on the quantitative tool were triangulated with qualitative data from four case studies. Data was collected between June and August 2016, by reviewing projects' documents and conducting key informant interviews. Our findings show that most of the projects investigated were not sufficiently gender-responsive. The easy-to-use framework presented in this paper provides a much-needed tool for guiding agricultural researchers and partners to design, implement, and measure the gender responsiveness of research projects

Unknotting typologies in smallholder farmers investing in seed potato production in South-Western Uganda

ABSTRACTSmallholder farmer participation in seed production ensures seed security among farming communities. Interventions that promote farmer investment in seed production, however, enroll any willing farmer, yet smallholder farmers can be heterogeneously composed of receptive and new intervention-shy individuals. This study sought to identify homogenous typologies of seed potato producers investing in seed potato production in South-Western Uganda. Data collected from 213 farmers and 16 focus group discussions were analyzed using principal component and cluster analysis methods to construct farming typologies. Psychological capital and investment level were major variables in typology distilation. The results revealed 4 seed potato producer typologies including, typology 1 of ‘middle-aged female seed multipliers of moderate psychological capital and low investment level', typology 2 of ‘old-aged seed recyclers of high psychological capital but with the lowest investment level', typology 3 of for ‘young male seed recyclers of moderate psychological capital but with high investment level' and typology 4 of ‘young male seed multipliers of high psychological capital and the highest investment level’. Investing in seed potato production across the typologies was constrained by identical factors, including land shortage, limited access to markets, credit facilities and seed storage facilities. Seed interventionists are recommended to focus on typology 4, 3 and 1 producers. Future typology studies should include psychological factors to introduce practical variability nested in individual interpretations of seemly constant contexts

GREAT Expectations: building a model for applied gender training for crop improvement

Capacity development is a critical entry point for integration of gender responsiveness in agricultural development, yet there is little reflection on who should be trained, on what, and how. As an opening paper to this special issue, we ask: What are key aspects of a gender training program that seed attitudinal shifts and practice change in agricultural research teams? To answer this question, we explore how the Gender-responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation (GREAT) project has pioneered a training model that seeks to challenge the status quo of crop improvement research, questioning norms and focusing on attitudinal shifts and practice change. We examine the project design, execution and iteration, practical constraints, and impacts on participants. We conclude that GREAT demonstrates the importance of a feminist gender training program for effective social change, with future work needed to deepen exposure to feminist theories and testing models of pairing learning with collaborative research engagements