TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF RESEARCH ON WOMEN FARMERS IN AFRICA: LESSONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS; WITH AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Boserup, E. 1970. Women’s Role in Economic Development.
New York: St. Martin’s Press.

This is the classic work on women’s role in economic
development, including agriculture, which initiated much
of the discussion of this topic in the 1970s. Boserup
identifies two patterns of subsistence agriculture, based on
whether the men or the women are the primary food
producers. She claims that men do little farm work in areas
that are sparsely populated and where shifting cultivation is
used. Where extensive plow cultivation is used, women are
involved in agriculture, but men are the primary food
producers. However, men and women both work on the
farm in areas where irrigated land is intensively cultivated.
Based on these generalizations, most of Africa consists of
patterns of female farming. Since much of the work on
women’s roles in agriculture has been in response to
Boserup’s claims, this book provides a useful base for
understanding the discussions and research that have taken
place in the past three decades.

Boughton, D., T. Senghore, and G. Langan. 1985. A study
of farmers’ intercropping practices and objectives and
the performance of maize/cereal patterns in the Upper
River Division, 1985. Washington, D.C.: USAID.

This study recorded and evaluated the farming practices in
the Upper River Division. Various types of maize
intercropping patterns are discussed, along with four other
crop-based patterns. Farmers intercrop maize for greater
yield stability (i.e., an insurance policy against low returns
to labor and land, especially in areas with low soil fertility or
where assurance of obtaining fertilizer is low) and other
benefits (i.e., using the same amount of land for more than
one crop.) The authors conclude that intercropping is better
than using fertilizer to stabilize yields of maize, sorghum-
maize, and millet crops when environmental conditions are
poor. The authors suggest that certain improvements, such
as improved plant varieties, better intercropped plant ratios,
and allocation and timing of fertilizer applications could
make groundnut and maize intercropping systems perform
better. More focus should be given to finding better ways of
intercropping cowpea with maize or cotton.

Boughton, D., T. Reardon, and J. Wooldridge. 1997.
Determinants of Diversification of Urban Sahel Diets
into Maize: A Contingent Valuation Study of Processed
Maize Demand in Mali. Paper presented at the
International Association of Agricultural Economists,
Sacramento, California.

Using contingent valuation techniques, this paper explores
the potential demand for new maize flour products in
Bamako, Mali. Working women particularly appreciate the
convenience characteristics of maize flour. The demand for
this convenience food increases with the ability to afford the
flour and the increased opportunity cost of time. Yet, due to
the poverty of many urban households, new maize products
still have only a moderate effect on the overall demand for
maize.

Bryson, J.C. 1981. Women and agriculture in sub-Saharan
Africa: Implications for development (an exploratory
study). In N. Nelson (ed.), African Women in the
Development Process. Totowa, New Jersey: F. Cass
Publishers. Pp. 29-46.

This paper examines the important role women play in food
production in sub-Saharan Africa. The social structures that
support the division of labor in agriculture are closely
examined and the effects of economic change in the
twentieth century are discussed. The author claims that
analysis based on the unit of the household is inadequate.
Different members of the household wield different amounts
of bargaining power. Factors that influence women’s
decision-making power within the household include varied
access to land, number of wives present, and independent
income. Finally, the paper discusses how women’s role in
agriculture affects the agriculture industry and the
development process.

Bukh, J. 1979. The Village Woman in Ghana. Uppsala,
Sweden: Scandinavian Institute of African Studies.

Based on a survey of Ewe households in Ghana in 1973, this
book provides a detailed picture of women’s roles in
agricultural households and discusses how colonialism
impacted women’s roles and women’s access to resources.
Changes in society created new opportunities for women to
make decisions, but also burdened women with new
demands on their time and less support. In particular, the
introduction of cocoa and migration of men from the area
greatly impacted women’s situations. At the time of the
survey, hybrid maize was not being grown by women because
it was seen as a cash crop and women preferred to grow crops
that could be consumed by the household.

Burfisher, M.E., and N.R. Horenstein. 1993. Sex roles in the
Nigerian Tiv farm household and the differential impacts
of development projects. Case Studies of the Impact of
Large-Scale Development Projects on Women 2. New
York: Population Council.

This detailed case study provides information on how an
agricultural development project may affect the
intrahousehold allocation of tasks and resources. New
technological packages were introduced to increase farm
productivity. Among the Tiv, there is a clear division of
control of crops by gender and a strong gender division of
labor by task. The crop which increased most in value as a
result of the project was yam, which along with maize, is a
traditional women’ s crop. The authors note that this may
result in men taking over yam farming, similar to what they
did with rice farming in the 1950s. Women’s access to land
and household decision-making are also examined in this
paper.

<<   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   >>

More intriguing information