Gender Norms and marketing of seed and ware potato in Ntcheu and

Dedza Districts in Malawi

Netsayi N Mudege, Kapalasa E, Chevo T, Nyekanyeka T & Demo

P RTB Annual Meeting

Imperial Golf Course View HotelSeptember 29-October 4 2014

Structure of the presentation

Background

Specific objectives

Seed acquisition and accessibility of seed (through

informal market channels)

Source and delivery channels

Knowledge and capacity awareness ,

Affordability opportunity costs and profitability

Conclusions

BackgroundIntegrating gender in RTB thematic research to enhance development outcomes

Understanding gender dimensions of seed systems in order to provide input into the development of gender responsive interventions and a gender responsive RTB seed systems framework

How gender and other social factors and norms affects access to quality seed and seed security for men and women farmers

Examine sources of new seed technology and access to information on seed by both men and women (Malawi and Bangladesh)

Specific Objectives Understand how gender influence seed

potato and ware potato marketing with what implications on access to quality seed by men and women farmers

Examine the market as a source of new seed technology and access to information on seed by both men and women

Provide recommendations for the Irish AID potato project in Malawi to ensure the design of a seed system that will be able to benefit both men and women.

Methodology

RTB seed systems framework Seed availability Seed acquisition and

accessibility of seed (Source and delivery channels, Knowledge and capacity awareness , Affordability opportunity

costs and profitability) Seed quality (health, physiological

stage and purity)

Policies and Regulations (Formal and Informal)

Sustainability and resilience

Equity and gender

Sex disaggregated focus group discussions with farmers (35 FGDs– average of 10 per farmers per group)

Individual interviews extension officers & representatives of private organisations (5)

Seed acquisition and accessibility of seed

Sources and delivery channelsLocal farmers and nearby local marketsWhy farmers sell seed? Poor storage facilities which meant that farmers

lost most of their seed to rot (mentioned by men)

Inability by farmers to expand production due to limited access to other inputs such as fertilizer (mentioned by men – men’s duty to purchase inputs)

To generate cash income to buy fertiliser (men)

Small sells to ‘lessen poverty in the home’ (mentioned by women)

Knowledge and capacity awareness

Farmers preferred to purchase seed from the village, (relations of trust between the seller and buyer).

Preference for men to buy seed from the local market because they have knowledge that women don’t have (‘bad seed’)

Men had access to knowledge networks that women did not have (e.g. markets, training etc).

P: We sell [seed] but we only sell that one which we will have left without sticks in the field, the bad seed

P: my husband would rather buy because I may buy seeds with diseases …I have never gone to buy seed potato

we are still tied in our own houses

P: we women are always home so we can plant the same variety for 3 – 4 years and it will lose its power

Knowledge and capacity awareness

Type of training

Awareness (%)

Trained (%)

Practicing (%)

Men Women Men Women Men Women

Positive and negative selection

71 62 73 67 77 66

Diffused Light Store (DLS)

42 35 39 49 47 34

Marketing and Profit Calculation

30 21 68 33 35 23

Women mostly less aware of, less trained in marketing and profit calculation. Why?

Knowledge related to seed and ware potato marketing may end up being concentrated among men & women may miss out on income related to selling of seed).

Ware potato marketingWho participates where depends on size of market (whether selling in bulk or small quantities), cash involved and plot ownership, uxorilocal/virilocal, Large number of independent traders/vendors, group marketing – Changing trends

‘When we sell the potato at the market the buyers will ask us to carry the potato seed to where they are going so the men don’t want that so they say it is women’s job

Group marketing approaches

Groups marketed both seed (to other farmers) and ware potato (to private companies)

No group seed quality control mechanisms for individually produced seed

Group income from private companies was usually paid to household head who are usually men

Affordability Pricing of seed on local markets

depends on local perception of what good seed and ‘bad seed’ are.

Both men and women farmers expressed the willingness to pay a higher price for good quality but women mentioned a lower affordable price than men

Some women mentioned that they bought ‘bad seed’ knowingly because they could not afford the good quality seed.

Compared to men women preferred non-cash based payments for seed

P: We will be lying to say this and that family can afford to buy, people don’t have money to buy the seed. It is difficult to get money and when you get money you have to buy food for the children to eat. (women producer group members)

Conclusion As sellers of seed women were often not participating

from a position of power but often as ‘stress sellers’

Perceived lack of knowledge related to potato seed among women led men to ‘own’ and control the crop and its income – access to training is potentially empowering for women

Women need to be targeted with training on on-farm production of quality seed in order to address bottlenecks in terms of access to seed – commercialization of seed production alone may not address their needs.

Private sector companies may need to explore the role of ICT systems (mobile money payments) in order to make ware potato marketing more gender responsive.

Framework: Seed acquisition and accessibility of seedGender is an important component of seed systems framework Social Barriers vs

‘infrastructural determinism’ in distribution channels - Chamberlin and Jayne, 2013

The framework is sufficiently flexible since it takes account of context and structural factors (Policies and Regulations)

structural limitations at local level are not well examined by the framework (e.g. weak farmer trading associations)

Could also focus more on the social factors that affect seed quality, accessibility and affordability

Social factors that may restrict men and women from participating and benefiting from seed and ware potato markets

Framework could take into account how interventions impact on social formations (including gender).

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Men and women’s voices matter in designing gender equitable and efficient seed systems