A Qualitative Assessment of Gender and Irrigation Technology in Kenya and Tanzania

Njuki, Jemimah; Waithanji, Elizabeth M.; Sakwa, Beatrice; Kariuki, Juliet B.; Mukewa, E.; Ngige, John

doi:10.1177/0971852414544010

Cited by 39 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Very few studies explore gendered patterns of irrigation technology adoption and women's ability to benefit from them. The existing research on gender and technology adoption is based in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa (see, for example, Njuki et al, 2014;Theis et al, 2018). There is no published literature on this topic in the context of the MENA region.…”

Section: Irrigation Gender Norms Technologies and Participationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Women, irrigation and social norms in Egypt: ‘The more things change, the more they stay the same?’

Najjar¹,

Baruah

Garhi

2019

Water Policy

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This paper explores how women and men participate in irrigation activities in Egypt, drawing from a survey administered to 200 men and 202 women and qualitative information from 150 interviews. Women participated in irrigation activities in 78% of the 402 households surveyed, suggesting that women are far more actively engaged in irrigation efforts in Egypt, and possibly in the wider MENA region, than is generally assumed. The diffusion of certain irrigation technologies such as drip, sprinkler and tatweer in recent years has made irrigation more socially acceptable for women to perform although some women had also been irrigating land long before these technologies became available. We identify land ownership, educational attainment, institutional support from government, donors and NGOs, and access to training in irrigational technologies as factors that enable women to optimally undertake irrigation. These factors enabled women to participate meaningfully in public institutions related to irrigation, such as water user associations (WUAs). Finally, we discovered that desire and ability to participate in WUAs declined dramatically for both women and men when institutional support was withdrawn or eroded. Thus, the paper concludes that we must look at a variety of social categories and relationships to understand women's involvement in irrigation and to identify ways to strengthen it.

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Section: Irrigation Gender Norms Technologies and Participationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Women, irrigation and social norms in Egypt: ‘The more things change, the more they stay the same?’

Najjar¹,

Baruah

Garhi

2019

Water Policy

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“…These returns and costs likely will not be the same for all household members. Several studies document important changes in gender roles after a technology has been acquired, including shifting burdens of labor and control over agricultural outputs (e.g., von Braun and Webb 1989;Doss 2001;Njuki et al 2014). However, few studies have examined who bears the costs or controls the benefits of a new technology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A cross-country study in Ghana and Zambia found that female-headed households adopt small-scale technologies at two-thirds the rate of male-headed households; and that whereas female-headed households are more likely to adopt manual technologies (e.g., buckets, wetlands), maleheaded households are more likely to adopt motor pumps and river diversions (van Koppen et al 2012). Analyzing 2005-2013 sales data from KickStart, a nongovernmental organization (NGO), Njuki et al (2014) find that women made up only 6 percent in Tanzania and 18 percent in Kenya of all buyers of motor pumps. These buyers were rarely women in married households purchasing pumps for their own use, but rather were unmarried women or married women purchasing pumps on behalf of their husbands.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What happens after technology adoption? Gendered aspects of small-scale irrigation technologies in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania

et al. 2018

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Diverse agricultural technologies are promoted to increase yields and incomes, save time, improve food and nutritional security, and even empower women. Yet a gender gap in technology adoption remains for many agricultural technologies, even for those that are promoted for women. This paper complements the literature on gender and technology adoption, which largely focuses on reasons for low rates of female technology adoption, by shifting attention to what happens within a household after it adopts a technology. Understanding the expected benefits and costs of adoption, from the perspective of women users in households with adult males, can help explain observed technology adoption rates and why technology adoption is often not sustained in the longer term. Drawing on qualitative data from Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania, this paper develops a framework for examining the intrahousehold distribution of benefits from technology adoption, focusing on small-scale irrigation technologies. The framework contributes to the conceptual and empirical exploration of joint control over technology by men and women in the same household. Efforts to promote technology adoption for agricultural development and women's empowerment would benefit from an understanding of intrahousehold control over technology to avoid interpreting technology adoption as an end in and of itself.

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“…These institutions influence the distribution of resources and people's ability to exercise agency and improve their well-being. For example, social norms governing men's and women's roles in the household and community might prohibit women from engaging in certain activities, like irrigation using manual pumps (Njuki et al 2014).…”

Section: Conceptual Framework: Linkages Between Small-scale Irrigatiomentioning

confidence: 99%

What does empowerment mean to women in northern Ghana? Insights from research around a small-scale irrigation intervention

Bryan¹,

Garner²

2020

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The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), established in 1975, provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition. IFPRI's strategic research aims to foster a climate-resilient and sustainable food supply; promote healthy diets and nutrition for all; build inclusive and efficient markets, trade systems, and food industries; transform agricultural and rural economies; and strengthen institutions and governance. Gender is integrated in all the Institute's work. Partnerships, communications, capacity strengthening, and data and knowledge management are essential components to translate IFPRI's research from action to impact. The Institute's regional and country programs play a critical role in responding to demand for food policy research and in delivering holistic support for country-led development. IFPRI collaborates with partners around the world.

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A Qualitative Assessment of Gender and Irrigation Technology in Kenya and Tanzania

Cited by 39 publications

References 19 publications

Women, irrigation and social norms in Egypt: ‘The more things change, the more they stay the same?’

Women, irrigation and social norms in Egypt: ‘The more things change, the more they stay the same?’

What happens after technology adoption? Gendered aspects of small-scale irrigation technologies in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Tanzania

What does empowerment mean to women in northern Ghana? Insights from research around a small-scale irrigation intervention

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