A mixed producer group on gender issues related to income sources, household expenditures and decision taking being trained (photo credit: ILRI/Birgit Boogaard)

A discussion paper titled ‘Reducing the gender gap in agricultural extension and advisory services: how to find the best fit for men and women farmers’, authored by among others, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Kathleen Colverson, has been published in the Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services (MEAS) this April.

‘The discussion paper addresses the concept of gender in agricultural extension and advisory services. It explores the significance of gender relations for the design, operation, and monitoring of agricultural extension and advisory services.

‘The report argues that reducing gender inequalities in access to productive resources and services could produce an increase in yields on women’s farms of between 20 percent and 30 percent, which could raise agricultural output in developing countries …..’

‘There are a number of compelling reasons why addressing gender issues in agricultural extension matters. These range from business case arguments that link reducing gender inequalities in extension services and agricultural production with improved institutional efficiency and development outcomes to development arguments that stress the importance of upholding international and national policy commitments eliminating discrimination between men and women and upholding gender equality….’

The Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services (MEAS) Discussion Paper series is designed to further the comparative analysis and learning from international extension efforts.

Read the whole article from the MEAS project website: www.meas-extension.org