Week 3: Sharing experiences of women on climate change

[nachibbatuchipo85]

Afternoon everyone,in this week’s we are looking at gender and farming.

We can and should think of climate change as a threat to all of us,the consequences of continued global temperature rise are far-reaching:

Stronger storms, dangerous heat waves,sea-levels rise and large scale migration for farmers,income loss,and food insecurity.

If farmers are particularly vulnerable to climate change,the impact on women Farmers is that much greater.Women make up 50 percent of the agricultural labour force and produce 60 to 80 percent of food crops in poorer parts of the world. But compared to their male counterparts, they have limited ability to overcome climate shocks. Why? Because, as too often the case women start out on uneven playing field.

In Zambia male famers archive an average of 20 to 30 percent higher yields than women. As a result women aren’t able to cultivate as much food for themselves and their families and they earn lower wages from crops they sell. Of course women don’t have lower yields because they don’t work as hard as men. Most women farmers own their land.

-They have higher levels of illiteracy, which may prevent them from acquring information that could help with climate change adaptation.

Women farmers also face the double time burden that women all over the world contend with.

They get up early to prepare food for the household management means they re experienced in allocating limited resources for their family’s well-being.

Research shows that women help their families adapt to environmental threats and that they are adept at information sharing and community mobilization which means,if women can gain access to the knowledge and tools to combat climate change,they could help build the resilience of whole communities.
They can only get certain information though various women groups, media.

[AnjelinaMkabili]

(1) Experience of women farmers on climate change

Women in Africa like in Kenya have been always on higher possibility of being affected by climate change compared to men because most of them relies on nature and nature based income sources in rural areas and also high percentage of communities are highly dependant on local natural resources for their livelihood.

Climate change has affected women in terms of crop production and their livelihoods, example frequent drought has has led to delayed planting and also contributed on crop failure to women farmers such as maize.

Another effect is occured floods have highly caused low yields to women farmers because swept away farm crops hence causing low yields or even poor yields.This affects stable food such as maize an beans which impacts direct and indirect to women who do farming activities as they expected to process, cook and also serve food for their families.

Climate change not only affects farm produce but also affects post harvest processing and storage.This is because bad weather causes grain loss.For example when there is inadequate sunlight grains can not dry sufficiently to be stored and become moldy then end up being unuseful to consumers and producers.

Women would adopt to cope with food shortage by purchasing food if they have means to do so. This is a common coping mechanism but comes with challenges since drought causes food shortage hence end up to cause price increase that heighten food insecurity,this affects women more than men because they have limited access to financial capital.When it’s more worse women would tend to feed their children first or even skip meal for sake of their families,and that affects their health negatively since they become weaker and malnourished.

(2) Yes women who do farming activities in Kenya and even all over other areas in Africa grows crops which experience climate change, examples are maize which is stable food,Green grams, cassava,peas and etc . when there is no enough rains and they planted these crops especially maize they end up having less yields or no yields at all.

On crops like cassava women grow them especially to ensure there is something to depend on during drought seasons and mostly in Some areas of Kenya in wich people are living near wild animal conservation experience climate change in a case where the wild animals during those dry seasons they would move to human settlements in search of food and also water and they end up destroying those crops which women had grown especially Cassava,This causes them to suffer hunger yet they did their best to overcome it.

(3) Yes they hold, Women not only do farming activities but also involve themselves into other activities like livestock keeping such as keeping cows for production of milk and meat where if farming would not succeed they can still earn something to provide their families.

Still livestock keeping has it challenges same as farming where if no enough capital the animal produce would not be good.For instance if there is outbreak of animal diseases and no money to treat it ,this would cause low produce or even poor health of animal.

(4) Yes women need information about these farming activities so that they are able to understand how to adopt climate change impacts.This would help them do their farming activities in best way as they can.Example they can understand weather and rain patterns which help to know what type of crops are they supposed to plant at certain season of rain.

They can get information from media such as radio station,Tvs ,Agricultural department,also from Departments wich deal with climate change issues and etc.

[Seidu-Latif.nathanie]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Female farmers in my Area went through pain this year. Female Farmers lost all their crops because of rain which they seek to into irrigation farming but the support and sponsors are not there to help them. Its very challenging and we pray for better harvest coming season. Female farmers depend on the rain to do their farming so in situations of climate change, they get affected. We advised them to dig holes on their farm incase water in needed to water their crops but for how long can this offer help to them.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   Yes, They grow tomatoes, pepper, rice, garden eggs etc.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Some do and some don’t. This lady does only farming and some do sell local food like “tubani” and some do go to market to sell sachet water to support their farming.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
   Yes, They need it specifically the climate change, which we always get informations and updates from from FRI information delivered to them on radio weekly from
   Department of Agriculture.
   The department has extention agents assigned to each community to help farmers.

[Liche]

Wow!!! @Busi_Ngcebetsha time is going we are now in week 3 as we are now sharing experiences of women on climate change. Women are the key players in farming process because most of our women especially in our region depend on farming for survival and they are the providers of food in most households. Therefore if there is poor rainfall pattern, floods, and droughts due to climate change women go through (Suffers) a lot.

1. WHAT IS THE EXPERIENCE OF THE WOMEN FARMER PARTICULARLY? : Women like here in our country Zambia we have different types of women and their experience as farmers are different. But here I will just describe two different experiences being successful and unsuccessful experience of women in farming.
   • SUCCESSIFULL EXPERIENCE: These are women that are able to do climate smart agriculture, access extension services, Able to follow cropping calendar and in most cases these women are able to do everything for themselves like open their own bank account, Pay school feels for their children, able to provide for the family and even take farming as a business despite being women.
   • UNSUCCESSIFULL EXPERIENCE: These are women farmers who experience a lot of bad than good in there farming process especially issues to do with access to land, financing, markets and extension training
   • Especially married women, mostly of these women work as unpaid workers as per traditions. Majority of our married women spend their time in the farms doings all the work needed at the farm but at the end their labor go unpaid and on bad notes these women are involved in both crop and livestock faming but when it comes to marketing husbands are involved.

2. DO THEY GROW CERTAIN CROPS THAT EXPERIENCES CLIMATE CHANGE IN A PARTICULAR WAY
   • Women farmers are the majority farmers in our region. Like here in Zambia women farmers grow different crops with different varieties. These crops are maize, groundnuts; soybean, cassava, sweet potatoes, sunflower, rice etc. These crops mentioned here are highly affected by Climate Change in a different way.
   • Notes: when there is Below normal rainfall forecast (drought) most women who grow crops like cassava, sunflower, wheat and sweet potatoes They benefits more with good yields, When there is Above normal rainfall forecast Rice farmers will have goods yields because rice requires more water. Finally if there is Normal Rainfall forecast women involved in growing crops like maize, groundnuts, soybean, etc will have goods yields.

3. DO THEY HOLD CERTAIN JOBS IN THE VALUE CHAIN:
   • YES!!! Women hold most jobs in the value chain. I would like to explain Value chain in my own understanding, Value chain is more like a process or activities in which a farmer being receives raw materials, add value to them through production, manufacturing, and also do other processes to create a finished product, and then sell the finished product to consumers.
   Notes: Jobs like seed sourcing, land preparation, planting, weeding, post harvest handling, and all these jobs in the farming value chain are done by women most men jump in when it comes to the Marketing process.

4. DO WOMEN NEED CERTAIN INFORMATION AND HOW DO THEY GET IT?
   Our women need a lot of information but I will only mention thing that I feel need urgent action which are in line with climate change and farming.
   • Climate smart information: women farmers need to be informed on how to farm with natural e.g. Agro-forestry, basins, compost making, Ripping and many more technologies.
   • Metrological information: Weather forecast information will help our farmers to plan by following the seasonal rainfall forecast to avoid loses and hazard.
   • Nutrition information: This information will help women farmers to choose better crops to grow after they understand nutrition contents that are in every crop they choose to grow. Also In most times when there is no food at the household due to drought or floods caused by climate change women will often give the only food to their husbands and children forgetting their nutrition needs at the end our women suffer malnutrition due to poor diet.
   • Business and skill information: I feel women also needs training on capacity building of their little knowledge in businesses and also empower them with farming implements like tractors and Ripper.

• How do they acess these needed info? : All these information can be easily accessed through Training, Radio programs, Meeting, workshops TVs etc. Notes: women should also be encouraged to form groups for easy identifications with some NGOs and for them to access government grants.
THANKS,
Liche from Zambia.

[Emmanuelbwalili1]

Q) 1. Ans: most Women farmers are faced with Food insecurity and Low income:
Climate Change shocks such as flash floods, prolonged dry spells, storms, pest and diseases, poor crop germination, crop wilting has negatively impacted the woman farmers which has contributed to hunger and low income(poverty), and as a result some of the woman farmers are NOT able to feed their families, pay school fees for their children, access better health services, purchase agriculture inputs etc.

Q)2.ans: yes

Q) 3. And: they are there but very few, like in my place they use to be bag counters if they are loading to and selling the products like maize.

Q)4. Ans: yes they do. Through FRI, radio station, TV station, internet, book reading

[Nyakomaguebenezer]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Female farmers in my Area went through pain this year. Female Farmers lost all their crops because of rain which they seek to into irrigation farming but the support and sponsors are not there to help them. Its very challenging and we pray for better harvest coming season. Female farmers depend on the rain to do their farming so in situations of climate change, they get affected. We advised them to dig holes on their farm in case water in needed to water their crops but for how long can this offer help to them.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   Yes, They grow tomatoes, pepper, rice, garden eggs etc.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Some do and some don’t. This lady does only farming and some do sell local food like “tubani” and some do go to market to sell sachet water to support their farming.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
   Yes, They need it specifically the climate change, which we always get information’s and updates from from FRI information delivered to them on radio weekly from
   Department of Agriculture.
   The department has extension agents assigned to each community to help farmers.

[davidbawanke]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Female farmers in my Area went through pain this year. Female Farmers lost all their crops because of rain which they seek to into irrigation farming but the support and sponsors are not there to help them. Its very challenging and we pray for better harvest coming season. Female farmers depend on the rain to do their farming so in situations of climate change, they get affected. We advised them to dig holes on their farm incase water in needed to water their crops but for how long can this offer help to them.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   Yes, They grow tomatoes, pepper, rice, garden eggs etc.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Some do and some don’t. This lady does only farming and some do sell local food like “tubani” and some do go to market to sell sachet water to support their farming.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
   Yes, They need it specifically the climate change, which we always get informations and updates from from FRI information delivered to them on radio weekly from
   Department of Agriculture.
   The department has extention agents assigned to each community to help farmers.

[Challah]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Female farmers in my Area went through pain this year. Female Farmers lost all their crops because of rain which they seek to into irrigation farming but the support and sponsors are not there to help them. Its very challenging and we pray for better harvest coming season. Female farmers depend on the rain to do their farming so in situations of climate change, they get affected. We advised them to dig holes on their farm incase water in needed to water their crops but for how long can this offer help to them.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   Yes, They grow tomatoes, pepper, rice, garden eggs etc.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Some do and some don’t. This lady does only farming and some do sell local food like “tubani” and some do go to market to sell sachet water to support their farming.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
   Yes, They need it specifically the climate change, which we always get informations and updates from from FRI information delivered to them on radio weekly from
   Department of Agriculture.
   The department has extention agents assigned to each community to help farmers.

[Donjosh]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Women have been affected by climate change just like any other person, although, women in the southern part of Kaduna are experiencing the changing nature and periods of rainfall which is affecting their planting pattern. The distortion in the traditional calculated timing for planting also affects the crop yield.

For instance, staggard or delayed rainfall pattern affects the planting of; maize, groundnut, guinea corn, ginger, millet, tamba, Soyabeans, cowpea, rice, cocoyam, yam, hibiscus (zobo) and many other crops.

Atimes, the rainfall might come a bit earlier than expected and ceased for weeks even running up to a month. If this occurs, the backyard garden suffers a lot where the spinach, red pepper, scent leaves, bitter leaf, zogale etc dries up hence they might not be having all the times to focus only on the garden leaving other farm work to suffer.
The inconsistent rainfall sometimes brings in some pests that later affects crops like maize, guinea corn, cowpea, millet etc.

There is also flooding of farmlands when the rainfall comes back heavily - Ladi and Shettu are some women that experience their maize and rice farm flooded and they recounted their loses from spending hugely in farming, seed, fertilizer, pesticides, weeding etc.

Women and or farmers don’t have any insurance that will cover up the loses they encounter in such difficult periods. Although, governments might have interventions only to big male farmers, thereby neglecting the small holder farmers and especially women because putting their numbers in a given area, region and country we will understand that their contribution to food security is great and it should not be treated with levity.

I wonder if truly stakeholders are taking women farmers into great account for their tremendous contribution to good nutrition and economy globally.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   Women in the Southern Kaduna area in Nigeria are farming maize, guinea corn, cowpea, millet, tamba, soyabeans, ginger, hibiscus (zobo), rice, cocoyam, yam, groundnut, hungry rice (aca) etc. There is no crop that doesn’t experience changes as regards climate change. The resultant effects is noticeable in the low crop yield, low/heavy rainfall, pest. Cocoyam over time has been experiencing worms that affects women farmers. The growth is stunted, the leaves turn yellow and gradually loose its greenish nature thereby making the cocoyam to rotten in the farm. Note the leaves is used by women as vegetables in making cocoyam soup.

Maize experience some bugs that eats up the leaves and the fresh shooting of the maize, gradually the leaves will turn yellow and the plant will eventually die off. Equally, when there is enough rainfall it kills the bugs, thereby allowing the maize to grow without any hindrance.

Yam growth is greatly affected whenever there is low rainfall.

Ginger is also affected whenever the rain comes late. Ginger is planted between the month of March - June. Once if the rains delays, many begin planting by May.

There is a general effects to all crops whenever the rain delays. The planting season comes with women working extra hard to meet up with the planting of different crops at the same time. This crash moment to plant ginger, maize, groundnut etc comes with a huge price, sometimes it makes many women not to plan some crops for their survival.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Many women here are active participants in the value chain especially, making akara (bean cake) from beans, awara (cake from soyabeans), selling cooked/roasted maize, “garri” from cassava, porridge from maize, guinea corn, “tamba” , rice etc., “moi-moi” from beans, local seasoning from soyabeans, popcorn, dankali (fried sweet potatoes), selling cooked jollof, tuwo from maize etc, pate from maize/guinea corn, kunu, waina from rice/maize. Some are grain sellers of all crops.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
   Generally, the radio station is one avenue the women rely on certain information.
   Women needs information about how to plant, apply fertilizer, apply pesticides, prevent pests, weather, best farming practices, storage after harvest as others have done successfully in other places.
   Women needs vital information to encourage them to continue farming.
   There is also an organise way of meeting women farmers in the communities to share with them modern farming techniques for greater yield. This should be done not just by presenters of the farmers Program on radio but by extension workers in the localities.

[Busi_Ngcebetsha]

Good morning everyone

Week 3 is almost over.

This morning I am sharing a snapshot of what is happening in the French ediscussion group, see below:

A SNAPSHOT OF DISCUSSIONS FOR WEEK THREE ON THE FRENCH PLATFORM

1. What is the experience of women farmers in particularly?

• rural women do not understand anything at all on this subject. Only those who have been to school manage to understand this phenomenon. Most women farmers know that the rain has been irregular lately but do not understand or control why;
• the means of combustion in the kitchen have changed women’s habits (gas, cow or donkey dung, palm nuts, bark of old trees, worn shoes, in short everything that burns, …) Access to firewood is becoming more and more impossible, the forest which facilitated the harvest has also disappeared;
• they have experience with the early starts of the season, the late starts of the season, pockets of drought during the rainy season, early and late stops of rains leads to poor yields;
• the experience is that of a realization of helplessness in the face of the effects of climate change. Women farmers observe and try in an artisanal way to fight against these phenomena. For example, if the fields are dry, they try to irrigate them, if the seeds no longer hold, they try to find new seeds that are more suitable or if there are more overflows and floods they try to make canals water drainage;
• in Burkina Faso, women farmers have a bad experience with climate change. Indeed, they bear the brunt of the adverse effects of climate change on their crops. In general, their crops are destroyed by heavy falls of hail, heavy rainfall which often floods the fields and by strong winds which destroy their crops. There are also pockets of drought observed in regions that cause great delays in crop growth and cause low productivity;
• Generally, it is women farmers who are the main victims of climate change. The disruption of the growing season affects women so much that the choice of seed varieties, sowing dates and diseases are no longer controllable. This farming season A of the year 2021 in Rutshuru in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the snails invaded the crops;
• The effects of climate change are increasingly worrying in the Democratic Republic of Congo, particularly in the agricultural and forestry sector, which depends heavily on weather conditions. This change develops a certain economic, social and environmental vulnerability, especially for rural women, and compromises food and human security. Also, climate change is forcing women to rethink their farming practices;
• Madame RK does fish farming. She runs 5 ponds. Last year, a drought caused enormous losses. The ponds dried up and the fish all died. To date, Lady RK has put her activity on hold for fear of falling into the same situation;
• Sometimes at the first rains in western Cameroon, women farmers sow the seeds but when the rains come late, the seeds dry up in the ground and they are forced to sow again. So they sort of play guesswork over time;
• Climate change is an environmental phenomenon with harmful repercussions on human daily life. Since the African populations are predominantly female, they are the most vulnerable. African women have one main activity: farm work. Although they do not own land, most of them are the first actors in agricultural production. African, traditional and semi-mechanical agriculture requires immeasurable efforts. The woman puts in a lot of efforts to overcome difficult situations whose causes are unknown to them. The disruption of the seasons disrupts the habits of women farmers. Because climatic hazards, delayed rains, drought, drop in rainfall, attacks on plants by insects, drying out of soils which make them poor, are evils that undermine our agriculture. The uneducated African woman struggles to understand the situation. Poor yields are linked to the gods;
• in Togo, climate change has affected women in all areas, particularly in their farming activities and it is only those who are educated who know what is happening and those who do not have the information are naive and live with the situation;
• Women farmers in Yanfolila in Mali have a lot of problems because they are not fully supported by the men. But some groups have resorted to improved seeds in order to increase their yield. These groups very often benefit from the advice of agricultural extension technicians, there are many women who practice crop rotation with the little space that men give them;
• More and more food products that we used to find in the markets, in a well-defined season, are becoming scarce. Many factors can justify this situation. Farmers tell us that this is mainly due to climatic variations. The rainy seasons are no longer under control as in the past. Also the earth is affected. All the forecasts related to the best product yields have changed. For example, in Cotonou, Benin, there was a shortage of tomatoes. I personally believed that it was linked to the pandemic whose distancing measures restricted movement, but when I approached a vegetable producer, he explained to me that farmers in the north of the country were suffering from climatic variations;
• In fact, in my community in western Cameroon, women have always been at the forefront. They take care of the house and do the field work. However, agriculture does not go without encountering difficulties, influenced by climate change. Due to the weakened soils, most of the women farmers use chemical fertilizers. The herbicides used are not only a source of serious health problems for users, but also affect certain tubers such as cocoyams. A popular bean variety here has gone extinct. However, we note with satisfaction that climate change has enabled women to come together to boost their economies. They are leading Common Initiative Groups and farming associations and are validly represented during agro-pastoral fairs which highlight the quality of their products, supervised in this by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and many other partner organizations that grant them not only loans and training facilities;
• in Togo, women farmers are feeling the effects of climate change, some more educated women farmers understand the phenomenon thanks to training and awareness campaigns. On the other hand, others do not master much, sometimes accusing the gods. Increased sensitization, especially in local languages, will gradually enable women farmers to understand.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?

• Yes they have crops that are subject to climatic changes in Togo. Few women cultivate mass consumption food crops at home such as maize and sorghum. They produce more soybeans and beans. These crops in Togo are done at the start of the season (June or July for soybeans and August for beans) respectively. These crops are really under threat from climate change. This year, for example, the bean was really threatened;
• In Mali, they grow peanuts and vegetables, especially tomatoes, garden eggs and lettuce;
• In our country, it is women who are the main actors in the field of agriculture. Beans, corn and rice are very sensitive if there is a lot of sun or rain;
• The cultivation of peanuts, maize, rice and cowpeas has become unmanageable, due to poor yields. Good seed varieties do not give good results either qualitatively or quantitatively. The scarcity of rains or the early onset of rains affect seed maturation. The peanut shells are empty at harvest. Corn cobs and kernels change shape. This year was really catastrophic for us the women of Chad;
• All crops, except trees can be affected by climate change. Cassava undergoes mosaicism due to impoverished soils. Some varieties of beans have disappeared, cabbages can no longer stand the cold of the dry season. Even some potato varieties no longer grow in the region. New seeds are always needed for adaptation;
• In Mali, some crops are greatly affected by the harmful effects of climate change such as corn, rice and peanuts;
• In Burkina Faso, each ethnic group has its own vision in celebrating the festivals at the end of the harvest. We have the yam festival, the new harvests. In this case, we select the seeds that will be sown in the next season. Nowadays, with the awareness on climate change, some women have realized that it is beneficial to use the improved seeds distributed by the agricultural research centres. They give up long-term crops in favor of medium-term crops such as beans (cowpeas), peanuts, maize and millet. In Burkina Faso, certain foodstuffs such as rice, cassava, yams and sweet potatoes are produced in lowlands because of the humidity. Women work a lot in these irrigated areas;
• Vouandzou and fonio, which have the capacity to be produced in poor soils and with a short cycle, are also cultivated by the women of Koutiala in Mali;
• Rice, corn, beans, garden eggs etc. are subject to the effects of climate change. Because these different crops are grown on wet soils and need water to produce. But when arable land becomes arid it is almost impossible to produce enough;
• Women farmers in my country (Togo) grow maize, beans and yams. They are subject to the effects of climate change due to the disruption of the seasons. Either it is the lack of rain at the right time or the flood that overwhelms the crops. This year, for example, the rains came late resulting in poor harvests, in the second season when the farmers threw all their hopes on corn and beans, heavy rains came to submerge the plants and the crops are poor and of poor quality, leading to the soaring prices of these commodities;
• in a particular way, the cultivation of cereals such as maize and millet are subject to the effects of climate change causing risks of food insecurity.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?

*Yes in Togo they have an important place in the value chains. The most important role they occupy is marketing. They migrate nowadays towards semi-industrial or traditional transformation;

• Most women constitute the first link in agricultural value chains, which is agricultural production. As for us, our association does agro-food processing. We have set up two maize flour production units: one for infant flour and the other for flour at household level. This activity made it possible to constitute 4 levels of links in the corn value chain (producers, corn suppliers, processors, and marketers);
• In Côte d’Ivoire, in certain value chains such as plantains and cassava, women are present in all positions;
• Our women farmers have many jobs in the agricultural value chain in the Koulikoro region in Mali;
• In Burkina Faso, some women farmers hold jobs in the agricultural value chain such as agro-food processing and non-timber forest products and in the marketing of these products;
• Women are first and foremost producers. They are in processing and marketing where they hold significant jobs. In Togo, women are organized in networks such as the Togolese Coordination of Farmer Organizations of Agricultural Producers CTOP which has several sectors: RENAFAT, ROPPA etc.
• In Burkina Faso, this question depends on the regions and is accentuated by the question of land. Indeed in some regions, they occupy an important place in the whole value chain from sowing to harvesting and even marketing. According to statistics, 87.3% of working women are employed in agriculture. But in other regions, they play a supporting role for men in the chain and are more visible in marketing.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?

• Women want to know when to cultivate, how to go about growing successfully despite the effects of climate change. Usually they don’t know who to go to. The only information they have is from our media;
• Women need capacity building in agriculture to improve their harvests;
• The need for information is a necessity for women. They are satisfied with the information broadcast over the radio waves, or even during educational talks, but in fact this is insufficient;
• They need certain information especially through the state services in particular which popularize information related to agriculture, also through radio broadcasts;
• “Absolutely, but there is no specific national training program for these ladies. For example, they use archaic methods to drain their lands after flooding in their fields, and even the few NGOs that try to mentor these women farmers have demands that sometimes discourage them. For example, having at least one field with an area of at least one hectare. Many women cannot afford that. Sometimes they ask that this field be registered in the land tenure department and the procedures and costs are not accessible to these women;
• Women need information. They need to know what technique or strategy to adopt to deal with climate change. Very often, they turn to sellers of phytosanitary products. Informally, they learn from the experiences of other women farmers. There is also the radio, a means by which they get certain information;
• Women seek to know what affects the seasons, which makes the rains rare and have this information only through us the media, we the communicators through our programs and newspapers and others through the experts in ours shows;
• The women of Koutiala in Mali need information on the exchange of improved seeds and different animal breeds within and between communities, the use of Agro-meteorological information. They can obtain this information through radio broadcasts, or by organizing training sessions at the community level;
• Women above all need training in the good farming practices of our time. They especially need information such as the choice of land, how to access credit from microfinance funds, how to get good yields on small areas. They can have this information in the technical services and on the media. This is why at the end of my agricultural programs I give the contacts of my guests so that people can call them when need be;
• I think that the alleviation of this problem consists in finding and transmitting agricultural techniques to producers. How to use irrigation methods in the event of a water shortage? How to anticipate these climate changes? I think this is how we could reduce the negative impact of this evil;
• Women need information: they need to understand what climate change is, the causes and consequences, how to adapt to this change, or to mitigate it. Women farmers get the information from our awareness campaigns, shows and more. They also obtain them from the networks of women farmers to which they are affiliated;
• They need to know and understand the challenges of climate change and the resolutions taken at continental level to counter climate change. They need to know the decisions taken after the COP26 for their practical implementation.

[likomenocaleb94]

Q1.
Women in Mufumbwe District have ventured into farming and have made that as way of sustaining there lively hood. Women in Mufumbwe district, have for sometime now supported there families through farming, especially single mothers.
Farming has improved standards of some women.
Q2.
The biggest challenge most women have had is accessing farming inputs, this also came as a result of lack of diversification, they have just been growing maize which needs fertilizer and if not the yieds will not be ok.
The other crop that most women Farmers have been producing is groundnuts. These two crops are the only mostly grown crops by farmers, and this has paused a challenge on women Farmers with the change in climate.
Q3.
Most women in the district have no jobs in value chain, this is because women seem to be ignorant on the value chain system. Hence a few have understood it and have ventured into charcoal briquette, this is the kind of charcoal produced from maize waists while others producing peanut butter and cooking oil from groundnuts.
Q4.
As Mufumbwe Community Radio station, we do engage women who are already in the system together with ministry of agriculture and cooperatives so that women farmers can get information needed.
Not just that, we are also working with some organization that understand farming system like conservation farming unit.

[Banda]

Q1. What is the experience of farmers particularly?
Women farmers experience a lot of challenges because they need labour or resources to weed their fields. Also the issue of gender discrimination comes in because women farmers are disadvantaged to acquire land and farming inputs adding that women farmers loss land or fields to their in-laws and have no or limited resources on how to fight for their land after being grabbed.
Q2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
Yes such as maize, soya beans groundnuts among other crops.
Q3. Yes of course in Zambia Comaco is one of the organization that has made it possible to employ women in the value chain such process.
Q4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it?
Yes they really need information and they can get it from Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD), TV, radios eg.

[Dee]

1. Women farmers have realised that rainfall patterns have changed over the years culminating in reduction of rainfall with every passing year. Rivers and streams which serve as water sources have either dried up or have very low water levels for irrigation. This has made farming activities very difficult and has resulted in loss of revenue and food for the family due to reduced yields and crop loss in the fields.
2. Women grow crops that experience climate change. Maize being the staple food has been greatly affected. Planting dates are no longer constant and varieties keep changing to adapt to the climatic conditions. This can be costly for the farmer.
3. Most women hold almost all the jobs along the value chain. From seed selection, storage to harvest and selling to the markets out there.
4. Women so need a lot of information and updates regularly inorder to adjust accordingly and understand what is going on. Naturally women are planners and work better when a plan is in place. There is need for provision of information through extension services, radio and farmer group trainings.

[MAYBIN]

1. Women farmers just like the men folks are faced with numerous challenges in their farming owing to the change in the climate. However, it must be understood that women because of their role at family level and at the farms make them have a different experience. For instance it’s the duty of women to fetch water and collect firewood for home use, Now, in the case of rivers drying up it means women require to walk long distances in search of water. On the other hand, with the rampant deforestation again women need to travel long distances in search of firewood. In a meantime, they are also required to work in the farms.
2. Yes they grow crops such as maize which are affected by climate change. Right now the southern region of Zambia is facing a partial dry spell and are on the cross, they do not know what next. Some who had already planted it means they have to replant.
3. Yes women hold certain jobs in value chain. For instance it is the job of women to clean up and shell groundnuts including packing them in sacks or bags.
4. Yes women need information on how they can add value to their crops such as soya beans and groundnuts. They need also information on how they can adapt and mitigate the impact of climate change.

[Lansah]

Differential Effects of Climate Change on Men and Women

1. Climate change impacts men and women differently, given their different roles and responsibilities at the household, community, and landscape levels.

2. Women are not only more exposed, but are also disproportionately vulnerable to climate change because they are often poorer, receive less education, and are not involved in decision-making processes that affect their lives.

3. Women depend more on natural resources for their livelihoods because they tend to possess fewer assets.

4. Cultural norms related to gender sometimes limit the ability of women to make quick decisions on whether to move to safer grounds in disaster situations until it is too late.

5. Differentiated gender roles, in most socio-cultural settings do not encourage girls to learn skills such as swimming and tree climbing that help people to survive during floods.

We can get more elaborate details from this document:

PB1_Africa_Overview-Gender-Climate-Change.pdf

[Pmphaka]

My contribution to the discussion for Week 3 is as follows:

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?

Without climate change in the picture, the situation of Malawian women in agriculture is already disadvantaged. Women play a crucial role in agriculture in Malawi, producing 70% of the locally consumed food. However, land rights and rules mean that women hold only one-third of agricultural holdings. More often than not, women’s access to land is through the family head, who is typically a man. Thus although they perform 50–70% of all agricultural tasks, women rarely have control over the land or the yields. Female-managed plots are, on average, 12% smaller than those of their male counterparts and 25% less productive due to differing levels of knowledge and access to inputs for improving farming efficiency.

Other factors that constrain the role of women in agriculture include lesser control over natural resources, lower education levels, reduced labour availability (due to gender roles that govern their role in home care), and minimal access to financial resources. These limit their knowledge of improved production practices, access to farm inputs (including fertilisers and improved seeds) and labour-saving technologies (such as ploughing machinery), and the ability to practice more labour-intensive farming methods.

Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?

Climate change has affected the agricultural sector more than any other sector. Currently, agriculture accounts for about 42% of Malawi’s GDP. Whilst tobacco, tea and sugar are important cash crops, smallholder farmers, most women, produce about 80% of the country’s food (primarily maize).

Ensuring that agriculture is sustainable within the framework of a changing climate requires that farmers are aware of potential weather and climate conditions to factor these into their planning. Various timeframes of information are essential to inform agricultural decisions. Weather forecasts help determine day to day activities, such as when to apply fertiliser. Seasonal forecasts can determine how much farmers can plant and what crop/variety to match anticipated conditions. Understanding the gender differences in farming patterns and practices is critical for effectively targeting climate services.

Do women hold certain jobs in the value chain?

A significant challenge for gender-equitable climate-smart agriculture is the invisibility of women in farming due to the lack of sex-disaggregated data and research into gender differences in current resource use, farming practices and aspirations. A study of 15 sites across West Africa, East Africa and South Asia shows that women have a broader conception of food security beyond production. Interventions that focus solely on production therefore potentially benefit men relative to women. A better understanding of the role of gender in the agricultural sector could illuminate how best to increase production, reduce poverty, improve food security, and transform gender relations towards a situation of equality. Enabling such a shift requires gender sensitivity within the institutions and organisations in Malawi’s agricultural development. Some donor organisations have begun analysing their support to agricultural development to determine the extent of gender sensitivity in approach and highlight any gender differences in outcome. Awareness of the need to train both women as extension workers and integrate gender into the broader curriculum for the agricultural extension has long been recognised in Malawi. However, the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development faces broader challenges of recruiting sufficient numbers into the extension service, despite incentives for training.

Gender differences need to be considered in the planning and design of agricultural interventions to support production in the context of a changing climate. It is not enough to design a gender-blind intervention and target women participants. Such an intervention may not be appropriate to the different farming practices that result from gender roles and relations in Malawi. As a result, although it may improve production, it will do so in a way that benefits men relatively more than women, thereby reinforcing existing inequalities. Instead, interventions need to be designed based on an understanding of the gender roles and relations and what that means for agriculture - ensuring that technologies, extension and climate services are targeted to the different needs of men and women. Because women farmers have different access to land, often grow different crops and have a broader conception of food security than men, targeting interventions to increase their productivity requires a gender-sensitive approach to what is done and how. Such an approach may involve different types of support for men and women to achieve the desired outcome.

Do women need certain information, and how do they get it?

Awareness of gender differences is essential to identifying and addressing gender differences in vulnerability to climate change. The combination of natural resource dependence and gendered differences in assets and resources means that women are typically more vulnerable than men to climate change. However, the reality is more nuanced. There are differences from place to place, and understanding the gender context is necessary to determine the specific nature of men’s and women’s vulnerabilities. A study in Mulanje (a district in the southern part of Malawi), for example, highlighted differences in women’s vulnerability depending on whether they were part of a male-headed or female-headed household. The same study also showed that place of residence was more correlated with differences in vulnerability than gender. Therefore, understanding the contextual specificities of gendered vulnerability is essential to target gender-equitable agricultural support to adapt to climate change effectively.

Currently, farmers rely on indigenous knowledge and personal experience when deciding what to cultivate and when to plant. According to a recent study, crop farmers in Malawi have defined that useful weather information is forecasts of extreme events, the onset of the rains, seasonal rainfall, daily weather and its linkages to pests and diseases. This information needs to be received on time for farmers to use. The agricultural advice that would be most useful includes information about cropping patterns. The preferred communication channels are visits from extension agents, radio messages and SMS by cell phones. Critically, however, women farmers are significantly less able to use the advice relative to men because most of these channels get to men. This reflects women’s lesser control over agricultural assets and access to land.

Having the correct information to share is one thing. Getting it to the right audience is another. One of the evaluation criteria for agriculture radio programmes that Farm Radio International promotes is to ensure that the radio programme is broadcast when the targeted audience can listen to the radio programme. For instance, women in rural Malawi are very busy with household chores between 11 am and 2 pm. Therefore, it is a waste of airtime to broadcast an agricultural information programme during those hours when most rural women are busy with household chores.

[Naomi]

1. What is the experience of women farmers particularly?
   Iam enjoying the discussion so far and learning a lot. Well, the experience of women farmers here in Zambia has been that, due to high levels of deforestation which has contributed to climate change, women in rural areas are made to walk long distances with their children in search of firewood. The ever-rising temperatures has made sources of water to dry up as a result, the women and children are forced to walk kilometers to also fetch water. Coupled with the reproductive role of looking after households and taking care of the families, women are made to sweat in search of firewood and water. Women need firewood in order to prepare meals for the family and nowadays in rural areas the task of preparing such meals is not easy unlike in the past where they would fetch wood in the nearby bushes. As a result of walking long distances, the women get so tired by the time they are returning home to prepare the meals for the family. The disappearance of the forests has also made it difficult for women to easily find wild fruits, animals and birds for home consumption.

2. Do they grow certain crops that experience climate change in a particular way?
   From my observation, some women have ventured into growing sweet potatoes which have proved to be a friendly family crop. Sweet potatoes which are drought resistance have nutritional benefits, when the leaves are cooked, they are eaten with nshima and the tuber is mostly used for breakfast.
   Some women, especially in the Northern and central provinces of Zambia have been growing cassava and sorghum which thrives despite extreme climatic conditions. When the sorghum is harvested it is pounded, cooked and eaten with relish just like cassava when it is harvested and dried up. The cassava leaves when cooked is eaten with nshima.

3. Do they hold certain jobs in the value chain?
   Well, mostly women are used as farm laborer’s, they are used to till the land in preparation of planting and you will find that most of the times they are used to plant seeds due to their high precision. These are the only types of jobs that many women hold in the value chain. In terms of dairy production, my observation has been that women are made to do household related work like cleaning the milk canes and cooking food for people working at the dairy factory.

4. Do women need certain information and how do they get it? Yes. Women need information on the benefits of planting multipurpose fruit trees such as tamarind and mangoes among others. We challenge our broadcasting partners to spread messages on the importance of women to plant fruit trees as they do their household gardens. From the branches of the fruitrees, women can use the same for firewood and the fruits for home consumption. Yes, women should be encouraged to listen to radio programs so that they can make decisions that can change their lives. This can be the best empowerment to give to the rural women.

[Naomi]

I agree with you Maybin, some women have even developed health complications as a result of walking long distances in search of firewood and water.Some develop sore feet or swelling of their legs due to the long kilometers .

[Naomi]

Indeed, despite rural women farmers not knowing what it is that is causing the extreme weather patterns, they too are experiencing climate change and feeling the impact. As broadcasters, it would be good to empower women with information through radio programs on ways to mitigate the effects of climate change and even come up with programs taking about climate change and what causes it so that they can try and implement ways in which to mitigate the effects.

[MAYBIN]

NAOMI that is very sad. Surely, African goverments and particularly Zambia should find ways of easing challenges faced by our rural women famers. There’s need to economically empower rural communities if they are to stop deforestation through charcoal burning.