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Transformation for Smallholder Farmers: Pathways for Agricultural Development in Rwanda
Transformation for Smallholder Farmers: Pathways for Agricultural Development in Rwanda
Jolly Dusabe
This thesis asks: “What are the drivers of smallholder agricultural growth in Rwanda?” Since 2000, Rwanda has recorded unprecedented year on year growth in agricultural production, averaging more than 5% per annum. This growth, driven mainly from the food sector, has occurred after decades of stagnation. The government of Rwanda sees agricultural growth as a critical driver for poverty reduction and economic growth. The study examines policy measures adopted by the government of Rwanda in pursuit of this growth, evaluates the mechanisms for implementation, and asks farmers and other stakeholders which interventions were most significant.
Chapter 1 introduces the study and its objectives. Chapter 2 outlines Rwanda’s history in the agricultural sector up to 2000, and describes the policies that were developed after 2000, and the launch of those policies into the field thereafter. It looks at government-led initiatives for land use consolidation, infrastructure and crop intensification, and also at the processes whereby the private sector is brought in to support growth. Chapter 3 reviews literature relevant to the role of the agricultural sector in development, and the processes by which change occurs. Chapter 4 outlines the mixed methods and methodological framing of the study.
The four data chapters (Chapters 5, 6, 7 and 8) paint a detailed picture of policy generation processes and demonstrate how different participants experienced it. In Chapter 5 a survey of farmers shows the direct changes that have occurred in farming and farming practices. Chapter 6, on technology adoption, uses survey data and interviews to draw directly on farmer experience and decision-making. Chapter 7 explores survey data and focus group discussions to show how institutional development at grassroots level played a part in the process of change. Chapter 8 draws on testimony from a range of policymakers, donors, other stakeholders, local leaders and farmers to understand new alliances, partnerships and arrangements that demonstrate benefits of collective action in the process of growth.
Chapter 9 draws conclusions from the study. It shows the extent to which policy institutions and has facilitated technology adoption in Rwanda since 2000, and highlights the new institutional arrangements that have emerged to drive the process of agricultural change for smallholder farmers.Rwandan government, Cambridge Trust, Queens’ College, Smuts Memorial Fund and Department of Political and International Studies (Polis
Are health systems interventions gender blind? examining health system reconstruction in conflict affected states
Background
Global health policy prioritizes improving the health of women and girls, as evident in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), multiple women’s health initiatives, and the billions of dollars spent by international donors and national governments to improve health service delivery in low-income countries. Countries recovering from fragility and conflict often engage in wide-ranging institutional reforms, including within the health system, to address inequities. Research and policy do not sufficiently explore how health system interventions contribute to the broader goal of gender equity.
Methods
This paper utilizes a framework synthesis approach to examine if and how rebuilding health systems affected gender equity in the post-conflict contexts of Mozambique, Timor Leste, Sierra Leone, and Northern Uganda. To undertake this analysis, we utilized the WHO health systems building blocks to establish benchmarks of gender equity. We then identified and evaluated a broad range of available evidence on these building blocks within these four contexts. We reviewed the evidence to assess if and how health interventions during the post-conflict reconstruction period met these gender equity benchmarks.
Findings
Our analysis shows that the four countries did not meet gender equitable benchmarks in their health systems. Across all four contexts, health interventions did not adequately reflect on how gender norms are replicated by the health system, and conversely, how the health system can transform these gender norms and promote gender equity. Gender inequity undermined the ability of health systems to effectively improve health outcomes for women and girls. From our findings, we suggest the key attributes of gender equitable health systems to guide further research and policy.
Conclusion
The use of gender equitable benchmarks provides important insights into how health system interventions in the post-conflict period neglected the role of the health system in addressing or perpetuating gender inequities. Given the frequent contact made by individuals with health services, and the important role of the health system within societies, this gender blind nature of health system engagement missed an important opportunity to contribute to more equitable and peaceful societies