Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Legume Systems Research

Without complete, accurate data, entire groups of people are invisible to us. All too often, they are the ones we most need to see, and all too often they are women. Together, we can make women’s empowerment a top priority and close the gender data gap in agriculture.  -- Samantha Power, USAID Administrator, 2022

The international development community increasingly emphasizes the need to build the evidence base on gender and agri-food systems.  Both the U.S. Government (USG) Food Security Strategy, 2022-2026 and the forthcoming USG Global Food Security Research Strategy, 2022-2026 promote equitable engagement of women and men, along with equitable benefits from research and development investments.  As such, attention to data collection and analysis of gender-differentiated data – and their intersections with ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age etc. -- must be integrated into the intermediate results of all related USG-funded food security initiatives.

The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Legume Systems Research led by Michigan State University supports multiple projects toward this end, including the following four highlights of gender responsive research.  Two of these projects, focused on the economic dimensions of crop subsidies and product markets respectively, have incorporated attention to gender differentiated data collection and analysis as part of their initial research designs and budgets.  The remaining two projects have focused on integrated pest management (IPM) and plant breeding, respectively, both utilizing Legume Systems Innovation Lab supplementary funds to strengthen the gender responsive dimensions of their research approaches. 

Gender data contributions on crop subsidies and product markets.  Our first example examines “How Input Subsidy Policies Change the Legume Farming Landscape”.  Led by Dr. Melinda Smale, Michigan State University (MSU), researchers in Mali, Burkina Faso, and the U.S. have now analyzed several existing data sets to better understand 1) the effect of fertilizer subsidies [for starchy staples and cotton] on production diversity (cowpea area shares, plot counts, and spatial indices of crop diversity on farms and villages); 2) the gender- and youth-differentiated effects of fertilizer subsidies on cowpea production, quantities sold and revenues; 3) whether on-farm crop diversity or market participation most influences the dietary intake of women of reproductive age (Theriault and Smale 2021; Assima et al. 2021). 

Findings to date, according to Dr. Smale, indicate that “no matter which econometric approach we apply to either household or village data, we find that the fertilizer subsidy incentivizes the allocation of farmland toward targeted crops (major cereals; cotton) and away from cowpea, also reducing crop species diversity.” From a gender perspective, in Mali, analysis of a large-scale data set shows that the amount of subsidized fertilizer received by a farming household is negatively associated with the women's cowpea harvests and revenues, with the opposite effect on men’s revenues. Findings raise questions regarding the subsidy program design and its gender-differentiated effects on production of underutilized crops with potential agronomic and nutritional benefits, such as cowpea (Smale and Theriault 2021).

After examining indicators measured in several databases and interpreting the regional literature, the researchers also conclude that cowpea is better characterized as a “women’s enterprise” than a “women’s crop” in Mali. Men dominate cowpea production, although depending on the agroecology, women may specialize in cowpea. Women appear to earn more from selling the cowpea they grow on their individual plots and dominate the trade of processed cowpea products in open-air markets.  In Mali, investments to develop women’s trade of processed cowpea products, including the provision of credit, storage, and training in organizational capacity, would enhance the economic potential of cowpea (Smale, Theriault, Allen and Sissoko, submitted manuscript).  This portion of the research was conducted in collaboration with another project led by Theriault, described further below.

Finally, Dr. Smale tells us that, “we find a strong effect of on-farm crop diversity on diet quality among farm women in Mali and Burkinabe households, which is uncommon in the literature. This is robust to the indicators and datasets we use.  Diversity of food sources purchased in local markets also exerts a strong positive effect on diet quality. We recommend policy interventions at a regional scale to enhance the diversity of crops on farms and stimulate both the production and the trade of diverse food products in local markets. Market-based incentives for diversification could be a win-win farm policy” (Maimouna, submitted manuscript).

Dr. Veronique Theriault, also of MSU, leads the closely linked research initiative entitled “Quantifying the Scale and Scope of Nutritious Cowpea Products in Local Markets”.  Here, colleagues in Senegal, Mali, and the U.S. collaborate to inventory cowpea products supplied and demanded in local market hubs and strengthen the capacity of local partners to conduct market analyses, assess consumer demand, and implement policy research using innovative methods and tools. This research examines incentives for expanding the array of nutritious cowpea-based products sold in local markets, especially by women’s small-scale enterprises. More market opportunities for cowpea through value-added products can contribute to livelihood resilience for farmers and vendors relying on cowpea as a source of income.

Data collected from approximately 500 vendors in 26 local markets in Mali identify an array of cowpea vendors ranging from processed product, fresh leaf, and fodder retailers to grain retailers and wholesalers. Findings indicate that women are clearly at the heart of grain processing activities and the marketing of processed products as well as fresh leaves. The processing of cowpeas offers retailers higher gross margins compared to unprocessed grain.  Cowpea grain procurement remains a key constraint for women’s small-scale enterprises. Therefore, investments to boost production, reduce post-harvest losses, and improve storage capacity could increase their business opportunities (Sissoko et al. 2021). 

Moving on to Senegal, among the agricultural products sold by approximately 1,000 vendors across 98 markets, cowpea comes second by order of importance after cereals, followed by groundnuts.  Most of the cowpea sold in the markets is in the form of grain followed by cowpea-based processed products for human consumption and cowpea by-products for animal feed. The cowpea-based processed products for human consumption sold in these markets are cowpea flour, “ndambé” and cowpea fritters. These products are processed and marketed exclusively by women. Their relatively low supply is related to the lack of processing and storage facilities, and to the arduous work required for some cowpea flour products.

Given the great potential of cowpea processing and marketing in Mali and Senegal, it is recommended that policymakers include cowpea in their policy to support a nutritious crop appreciated by the consumers and well-adapted to the agro-climatic conditions of the region. 

These first two project research projects have incorporated consideration of gendered roles in cowpea production, processing, and sales in their original designs.  The next two research projects have both benefited from Legume Systems Innovation Lab incentives to move their designs and implementation plans to the next level, situating their approaches squarely in the gender responsive stage of the “Women’s Economic Empowerment Continuum” (Figure 1).  Co-designed gender responsive action plans have added opportunities for transdisciplinary inquiry among biophysical scientists and social scientists, as described below.

Figure 1. Women’s Economic Empowerment Continuum (Tibi and Kittaneh 2019:49)

Gender data contributions on IPM and plant breeding.  Also working in West Africa and focused on cowpea systems, research on “Science-Driven and Farmer-Oriented Insect Pest Management for Cowpea Agro-Ecosystems in West Africa”, led by Dr. Manuele Tamò, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), involves colleagues in Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria and the U.S. seeking to develop and deploy climate-resilient, environmentally friendly and economically profitable integrated pest management (IPM) approaches and tools - easily implementable by women and men farmers.

In this case, the research team discovered that, while they had access to related gender and IPM analyses carried out in Nigeria, they needed additional information on stakeholders in both Niger and Burkina Faso in order to further understand women’s knowledge, perceptions and interests related to IPM, along with associated risks, vulnerability and constraints to date in using IPM practices and technologies.  In Niger, socio-economic research has increased understanding of cowpea producer households, their farm enterprises, and associated agro-ecological practices, in this case funded by core project funds.  That data analysis established a significant potential among the women producers to join collectively in learning to process and utilize Neem tree seeds as a natural pesticide effective against the legume pod borer, a persistent and voracious pest accounting for as much as 80 percent of crop loss in the region.  Researchers thus moved forward to establish women and youth operated Community Based Neem Production Units (CBNP) dedicated to the harvest of Neem and subsequent manufacture of Neem tea bags. 

Project participants have reported that “along with the financial benefits of the Neem tea bag enterprise, the personal connections and the education they have gained has had the biggest impact” (Fierro 2020).  To scale up these results, Dr. Tamo and his team have partnered with the Scientific Animations Without Borders program (SAWBO) to create locally appropriate, gender responsive training videos to build women’s capacity in how to harvest, process, package and use Neem tea bags as a natural biopesticide in their fields (SAWBO 2022).

In Burkina Faso, however, the team required additional funds to carry out sociotechnical research on the gendered dynamics of pest management among cowpea farmers there.  And so the team applied for and was awarded a Legume Systems Innovation Lab-funded mini grant designed to amplify cross-cutting themes, in this case the project’s gender response.  This ongoing study, led by Dr Eveline Sawadogo-Compaoré, shows that women are already working hard to adapt to safe pest management through many initiatives, mainly agroecological techniques. Aware of the negative impact of synthetic fertilizers, they refuse to use them. According to one such respondent, “Yes, the integrated pest management allows us to produce a lot, and our production is organic and good for us and our families.”

Our final gender responsive research spotlight shines on the “Genetic Improvement of Dry Beans for Bruchid Resistance for Southern Africa”, led by Dr. Juan M. Osorno, North Dakota State University, in collaboration with colleagues in Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi and the U.S. Focused on developing preferred local bean varieties to include resistance to the bean weevil -- a.k.a. bruchids, an insect responsible for an estimated 48 percent of losses in common bean storage -- the team is making a significant contribution to food security. 

In many cases, gender was already an important component of breeding activities. However, production or agronomic traits usually take higher priority at the end of the process. Therefore, many breeding programs are gender sensitive, but not necessarily gender responsive.  To amplify their gender response via breeding practices, the team applied for and was awarded two forms of supplementary Legume Systems Innovation Lab funding.  First, a mini grant funded researcher capacity development specifically focused on gender responsive research approaches to plant breeding.  Through a highly dynamic online training experience with the “Gender-Responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation” (GREAT), the team not only built capacity but was also guided in the initial steps of creating a gender responsive breeding action plan, i.e. to be added on to and in collaboration with the ongoing breeding project. Recognizing the new initiative’s potential to inform other breeding initiatives supported by the program, the Legume Systems Innovation Lab Management Entity supported a collaborative award to the research team, designed to share findings across all relevant Legume Systems Innovation Lab-funded projects. 

Once awarded the collaborative award, the expanded research team set about implementing their action plan to apply a new set of gender responsive (G+) profiling tools developed through CGIAR with the addition of locally-based gender scientists in all three host countries.  Dr. Krista Isaacs of MSU, experienced in the development of these new G+ tools, provides periodic technical assistance to the team as well.  This add-on component led by Dr. Kelvin Kamfwa of the University of Zambia (UNZA) coordinates closely with the core project.  Guidance by Dr. Andrea Allen, the Legume Systems Innovation Lab Resource Resilience Team Gender Advisor, has also been of crucial importance for the success of this add-on project during its first year.

Beginning with construction of G+ customer profiles in Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi, based on secondary data, the team co-created data collection tools designed to be gender responsive in gathering the additional data needed to better define final versions of G+ customer profiles and thereafter the G+ product profiles of the common bean qualities preferred by each customer segment. Continuing data interrogation and interpretation among collaborating biophysical scientists (bean breeders) and social scientists (gender leads) has resulted in a more comprehensive approach, an ongoing example of the type of “convergence research” promoted  by the US Government’s Global Food Security Research Strategy, 2022-2026.   Once this data has been fully assembled and analyzed, each country level breeding program will have the raw ingredients available to develop customized approaches to engage women producers more effectively -- and in equitable portions to men producers -- into the stages of seed multiplication and sales. 

So why is this important?  USAID recognizes the important role of gender in achieving sustainable outcomes and has recently announced the doubling of funding in efforts to advance global gender equity and equality. The above highlights of Legume Systems Innovation Lab supported gender responsive research demonstrates the key contributions each project is making to these core research areas.  At the same time, through publication of results and ongoing partnerships with development implementers both upstream and downstream, the value of these findings can be multiplied.  For example, the G+ bean team working in Southern Africa will share their findings at the Legume Systems Innovation Lab 2023 Global Convening. This targeted outreach to teams also researching common beans across the value chain and to relevant cowpea breeding activities taking place in West Africa will amplify the benefits of this work.

The end result can be a far wider impact with research and development dollars than has been realized to date. Because women have often been ignored or minimalized in the design and implementation of food systems activities, the investment in their inclusion proves strategic, as rate of return-on-investment dollars will be greater than ever before.  Through effectively understanding, including and facilitating the equitable empowerment of women and men, the pace of food security strengthening will be significantly multiplied.