INTRACOF - The impact of intra household decision making on the sustainability, efficiency and equitability of household farming in sub-Saharan Africa.

Abstract

This data was collected in the framework of the MSCA-IF-2015-EF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship project with the acronym INTRACOF. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No 702964. https://cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/200274/factsheet/en This research project assessed the extent to which more participatory intrahousehold decision-making about production and resource allocation contributes to more sustainable, efficient and equitable household farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa, more specifically smallholder coffee farming systems in central Uganda (Masaka-Kalungu and Mubende) and south-west Tanzania (Mbeya). An intervention in which spouses in household are intensely coached in participatory decision-making about production, resource allocation and income expenditure was randomly encouraged among Ugandan and Tanzanian smallholder coffee farming households. A lab-in-the-field experiment was conducted at endline which permits to appraise if provision and appropriation behaviour by spouses in households who were coached in, respectively made aware about, participatory intrahousehold decision-making is more cooperative, than in control households. The impact of participatory intrahousehold-decision making on the sustainability, efficiency and equitability of the outcomes from provision and appropriation behaviour in household farming systems can be studied with using the baseline and endline individual survey data collected among spouses in treatment and control households. The intervention, implemented by the Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung (HRNS) had two stages (https://www.hrnstiftung.org/gender/). In an initial stage, awareness raising couple seminars were organised. In the couple seminars, which take three to four hours, the HRNS gender officer guides couples through a self-assessment of the current division of roles, responsibilities, decision-making power and control over resources in their household. In a next stage of the intervention, a selection of couples who participated in the couple seminars goes through a package of activities during which the couples are intensively coached on how to implement participatory intrahousehold decision-making. A first activity is a one-day workshop for couples focused on putting participatory planning and decision making into practice. Drafting a joint household farm plan and budget is an essential tool for this activity. Secondly, the couples receive a subsequent household visit during which the HRNS gender officer continues the coaching and provides support with the implementation of the farm plan and budget. Thirdly, women attend a women leadership training to strengthen their participation and leadership skills within farmer groups and in their household. The final activity is a follow-up workshop in which couples share experiences and self-evaluate the coaching package