Recent research highlights the role of gender in pastoral and dryland innovations

A study to understand women’s roles in rangeland governance and leadership described how cultural norms limit, and may sometimes enable, women to assume leadership roles in rangeland resource management and decision-making. Women often have more knowledge than men about certain resources, such as water and medicinal herbs. Women’s roles in fetching water have major implications for their labour burdens. Conserving and protecting water sources near homes can alleviate gendered burdens associated with water harvesting, for example.  Through PRM activities, such as gender sensitisation, women’s engagement in rangeland resource management has increased.

Accelerating the Impact of CGIAR Climate Research in Africa (AICCRA) project is scaling climate information systems (CIS) and climate-smart agriculture (CSA) using socially inclusive approaches to support climate adaptation capacities and abilities.

A recent study found that digitally based CIS services can exclude women. Women’s ownership and access to mobile phones are on the rise, however, women’s use of phones is still lower than men’s ownership of phones, both smartphones and feature phones.   ILRI is partnering with Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) to enhance the uptake of decision-making tools that support the development of context-specific weather and agro-advisory services. In addition, to broaden the scope of CIS and CSA, the use of radio and community-based climate knowledge networks, are receiving support to enhance information reach. 

AICCRA  has also increased women’s uptake and adoption of drought-tolerant crops in lower eastern counties. Over 1000 women participate in seed distribution and receive training on drought-tolerant crops in these areas marking a two-thirds majority of beneficiaries from the project.