Empowering women farmers in Ghana: Introducing the gender handbook for extension agents

At 42%, women form a large and important part of the global agricultural work force. In Ghana, this figure is even higher. Here, women make up 52% of the labour force and produce 70% of food crops. However, gender norms and stereotypes often prevent them from fully participating in decision-making on family farms. This impacts…
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Empowering women in agriculture: The digital leap in Bangladesh

In the heart of Bangladesh, where agriculture embroiders the vast landscape of rural livelihoods, a digital revolution is quietly unfurling. Although gradual, this change holds the promise of transforming the traditional agricultural practices that have been the backbone of the nation. However, the fulcrum of this transformation—empowering women farmers through digital advisory services—remains a story…
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“Let’s talk about it”: Championing gender dialogues in Ghana’s advisory services

In Ghana, as in many other countries, women face challenges accessing extension advisory services. To improve the provision for women, in 2021, PlantwisePlus assessed the barriers to women’s participation in and access to extension services. The programme team used an FAO-developed tool called the Gender and Rural Advisory Services Assessment (GRAST).
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Why it’s important to prioritize unpaid care work in the agriculture sector

Gender norms often prevent women from entering into productive careers in agriculture. These norms are a type of social norm related to what communities believe men and women should and shouldn’t be doing. They’re shared beliefs about typical and appropriate behaviour in a group.
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Overcoming gender barriers to tomato farming in Pakistan

Tomato is an important crop in Pakistan – every year, the country produces 4.2 million tonnes of tomatoes. Growing them can be labour intensive. But research shows that tomato production has the potential to generate good incomes for rural smallholders. This includes incomes for women farmers. In Pakistan, women account for over 60% of active…
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Embracing equity for women farmers

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Women farmers make up around 43% of the agricultural labour force and produce over half of all food grown worldwide. Yet, when you picture a farmer, are they a woman?  This year’s International Women’s Day theme is ‘embrace equity’ and its aim is to get the world talking about why equal opportunities aren’t enough. People…
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Plantwise: helping female farmers in Nepal access advisory services 

Female tomato farmer in Nepal
In almost all regions of Nepal, women have a greater involvement than men in farming activities. The World Bank estimates that 74% of Nepalese women work in agriculture, yet they struggle to have equal access to agricultural resources.  A new study highlights gender integration in the Plantwise programme and identifies the strengths and limitations in Nepal. It focuses…
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Innovation on the ground can be critical for gender integration

Female farmer walks along dirt track holding vegetable crop, Kenya
Gender-based social norms are major barriers to women accessing agricultural extension advice and adopting new practices.  Although women make up 43% of the global agricultural labour force, just how gender-equitable are extension services like Plantwise?
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Women in rural agriculture: a CABI interview

female farmer
Women play a significant role in agricultural production. Although women have limited say in decision-making on family farms, they make up nearly half of the global agricultural workforce. However, female farmers face a number of barriers, which must be addressed if we are to achieve a number of Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 5: Gender…
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PlantwisePlus: female farmers and rural extension advisory services

Female farmer at a plant clinic
It’s widely known that female farmers make up a substantial portion of the agricultural labour force (43%) in developing countries. However, productivity gaps between farms managed by men and women farmers exist, because women farmers have less access to various production inputs and labour, compared to male farmers.[1]
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