This section provides you with the opportunity to discuss your perceptions of women's involvement in agriculture. It considers women's role in agriculture and rural development on a worldwide basis, as well as regionally, and within your country.

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Women's Role in Agricultural Production

Write in the table below your estimates of the following:

• percentage of men and women involved in agriculture in the world (i.e.: out of 100 men, how many are involved in agricultural activities, and out of 100 women how many are involved in agriculture);

• percentage of men and women involved in agriculture in your region;

• percentage of men and women involved in agriculture in your country.

During the group discussion, add the average percentage estimated by the class, as well as the official figure.

Area

X of Men

% of Women

World

your estimate

class average

official figure

Your Region

your estimate

class average

official figure

Your Country

your estimate

class average

official figure

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Gender Related Responsibilities

List the main agricultural and household tasks. Next to each task list the share of responsibility men have and the share that women have in your country.

Task

Men

Women

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Female Headed Household

In many rural areas of the world, an increasing number of men are moving to the towns or to other countries in search of better paid jobs. One of the results of this migration is that the number of female headed households is growing.

What could be the likely effect of this on:

• agricultural production;

• the work of rural women.

What implications would this have for extension activities?

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 2 Barriers to women's involvement in extension

Barriers to women's involvement in extension

Both men and women farmers, especially the poorer ones, face a number of problems or constraints which affect their ability to participate in and benefit from extension activities as well as their possibilities to improve agricultural production and the well-being of the rural household. Social and institutional factors tend to create additional constraints for women, further limiting their involvement in extension. Extension workers need to be aware of these factors, to be able to adequately address them in planning extension activities.

Common Constraints Faced by Rural Women

Working in small groups (maximum 5 people each):

• list the most common problems faced by women farmers in your area which have a direct implication for women's participation in extension activities;

• identify the causes of the problems.

To help structure your discussion use the following form:

Problem/constraint

Reason(s) for the problem

1. Time related:
-
-
-

2. Mobility related:
-
-
-

3. Credit related:
-
-
-

4. Other problems:
-
-
-

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 3 Reaching women farmers: the difficulties faced by extension services

Farmer

The first two sections of this module have outlined some of the reasons for the limited integration of women in extension activities. More specifically, the two sections have highlighted:

• the significance of women's role in agricultural production and the well being of rural households;

• the specific time and mobility problems and constraints women farmers face (this results in extension activities being planned at times or in places which hinder women's participation);

• problems faced by women in accessing credit and inputs.

This section highlights some additional difficulties related to communication problems. In a number of cases, for instance, extension has also failed to effectively reach rural women because it has communicated directly only with men farmers, wrongly assuming the information will automatically be passed on to women. In other cases, communication methods have not been adapted to take into consideration the specific situation of women.

Case Studies

Briefly analyse one of the following case studies, answering the questions at the end of the case.

Case Study I

In a rural community in Mexico, women have always been responsible for taking care of the water supply. A water supply project provided pumps for the purpose of improving the supply of water. Training on how to maintain the new water supply system was given to men, since the extension service considered it to be a man's job. However, the men did not maintain the system because water supply was women's responsibility. Shortly after the completion of the project, the new water supply system broke down and nobody repaired it.

• What went wrong?

• What would you have done had you been in charge of training people for using and maintaining the pumps?

Case Study 2

In an area of Burkina Faso men were trained in using animal traction for ploughing their fields, with the aim of allowing them to farm larger areas and achieve higher production levels. Women, who were responsible for weeding, were given no new technology or training to cope with the larger areas under production. Consequently they were unable to weed all of the crop and the total yield was not higher than from farming a smaller area.

• What went wrong?

• What other approaches could have been used?

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Role play

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Individual exercise: Develop a plan

Develop a plan

By the end of the course, you will need to develop a plan of action to improve the involvement of women in your extension activities. The easiest way to do so will be to keep this goal in mind throughout the course and build it up a little at a time, developing your ideas as issues are raised through discussion.

In addition to noting down useful aspects and ideas, you should aim at writing a part of the plan at the end of each of the next three modules.

After this first module, consider the following question, which would help you to prepare the outline for your plan.

• If in your area more men farmers than women farmers participate in your extension activities and you were asked to explain this, what would be your answer?

List some of constraints you have observed in your area of work (examples: mobility, time, accessibility).

On the basis of this, and from revising the notes of Module 1, you should be in a position to prepare an introduction (I to 2 pages) for your plan.

Key Points Diary - Module 1: The Need to Work with Women

Key Learning Points

Potential Applications

Section 1
Women in agriculture and rural development

Section 2
Barriers to women's involvement in extension

Section 3
Reaching women farmers: the difficulties faced by extension services

Module 2 Analysing women's activities

Women 1

Women 2

Women 3

Section 1 What information is needed

What information is needed

To effectively meet local needs and make the best use of the opportunities for development, extension services should have a thorough understanding of their target audience. When planning activities aimed at local rural women, a range of information on their specific situation is needed, as well as on the inter-relationship between their tasks and men's tasks. In fact. since women and men have complementary and, often, overlapping tasks and responsibilities, extension workers need to obtain most of the information on both men and women.

What Information is Needed?

In pairs, discuss the aspects about which you would need to gather information if you were to enhance the effectiveness of your extension activities with rural women. Draft a list of the main issues and be prepared to present it in a plenary session.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Surveys

Working in small groups and, according to group members' experiences, discuss some of the following points:

• surveys you have conducted;

• results of surveys you have used;

• reasons why surveys may fail to capture the extent of women's role;

• examples of similar situations encountered.

At the end of the group discussion some groups will be asked to present the results of their discussion to the rest of participants.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Conversation Between Extension Worker and Farmer

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 2 Gender and situation analysis

Gender and situation analysis

Both men and women farmers, especially poor ones, face a number of problems or constraints which affect their ability to participate in and benefit from extension activities as well as their possibilities to improve agricultural production and the well-being of the rural household. Social and institutional factors tend to create additional constraints for women, further limiting their involvement in extension. Extension workers need to be aware of these factors, to be able to deal with them in planning extension activities.

Practice Interview "Participant to Participant"

Working in pairs, run a Gender and Situation Analysis of your partner's household situation, taking turns at being the interviewer and the interviewee. Concentrate on your partner's own situation within his/her household, considering one of the components of Gender and Situation Analysis (either crop production, animal production or household activities (Tables 2.1, 2.2, 2.4)), and try to prepare a summary table on constraints, opportunities, strengths and threats.

The exercise should give the interviewer the opportunity to practice interviewing skills. It should also help them to understand how the interviewee feels when asked questions about his/her personal situation by a near stranger.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

A Poor Interview

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Practice Interview "Participant to Woman Farmer"

A number of women farmers have kindly accepted to join one of our sessions and to be interviewed by you. When the interview starts, concentrate on collecting information regarding who does what in their households, as described in step one of Gender and Situation Analysis.

Don't forget to thank the women for the time she has spent answering your questions.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Individual exercise: Develop a plan

Individual exercise

You should now be in a position to add a second section to your action plan. You should revise the worksheets presented in this Module and think about what needs to be modified to enable you to get a better picture of women's activities in your area and to better fit the specific focus of your study.

Once you have revised the worksheets, prepare a brief plan on how you expect to carry out the Gender and Situation Analysis. Include:

• objectives of the study.

• number of households to visit;

• time frame for collecting the interviews and for processing the information.

Key points Diary - Module 2: Analysing Women's Activities

Key Learning Points

Potential Applications

Section 1
What information is needed

Section 2
Gender and situation analysis

Module 3 Developing appropriate packages

Developing appropriate packages

Section 1 Technical content of extension packages

Technical content of extension packages

This section identifies some of the reasons why extension packages have, in many cases, failed to meet women's needs. In raising these issues, the section gives you the opportunity to analyse the suitability of some of the packages you have introduced and to assess how well they match existing constraints.

Why Adoption by Women Can Be Low

In small groups (max. 5 people each) try to identify some of the reasons why extension packages may fail to adequately address women's needs. Refer to specific examples for the points you raise.

Each group will present the results of their discussion to the class.

(write here and important points raised during the discussion)

Section 2 Access to credit

Access to credit

Though lack of credit is often a difficulty common to both men and women. the situation for women, as seen in Module 1, Section 2, is usually complicated by the existence of additional constraints. By looking at these constraints, this section will give you the opportunity to develop ways to help reducing their impact.

Credit Facilities

In small groups, briefly discuss and analyse the following issues:

• What do we mean by credit?

• What is the availability of credit in the area in which you work?

-What institutions provide small loans?

- What types of activity are most likely to receive credit?

- What are the conditions for granting credit?

- What informal credit is available?

• What obstacles could prevent women from obtaining loans?

One group will be asked to present their findings and the other groups to add points during a discussion.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Positive and Negative Experiences

Consider situations you have experienced related to rural women's positive and negative experiences related to credit. What went wrong or what were the causes of success? List the points raised in the table below:

Positive

Negative

eg. committed official to assess the contractual services provided

eg. Indebtedness

etc.

etc.

In small groups, take two of the points (one positive and one negative) raised by you or others in the class and discuss ways to reduce the incidence of negative experiences and ways to increase the occurrence of positive experiences.

Groups will be asked to present the results of their discussion to the class.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 3 Developing extension packages appropriate for rural women

Developing extension packages appropriate for rural women

This section will give you an opportunity to use the understanding of women's constraints that you have gained so hr. to identify aspects to include in extension packages which would enhance their appropriateness for rural women.

The points developed in this section are not a recipe to be followed step by step, but represent a list of the most common issues to incorporate in extension packages for women which you might want to consider.

Successful/unsuccessful packages

In small groups discuss the following points:

• identify the most successful/unsuccessful technologies/packages you have introduced to rural women in the past (choose one);

• what was the problem the package addressed;

• what was the result of adopting the ideas/technology,

• what were the reasons for the success or lack of success.

(write here and important points raised during the discussion)

Labour Saving Devices

Discuss any labour saving technologies you have seen. Consider their potential for introduction to women in your area. You may want to do some background research and to consider this issue individually before the session.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Individual exercise: Develop a plan

Individual exercise

You should now be in a position to develop a third section for your action plan. You will not be able at this stage to design a package which meets the needs of rural women in your area, since this can only be finalized once you have completed the gender and situation analysis. What you will be able to do, however, is to use your present understanding of local women's situation, their involvement in agriculture, their major constraints as you perceive them, and put them together with the insight gained through this module. Do the packages you have tried to introduce so far present a fair answer to these problems? Could any of the aspects analysed in this module increase the acceptability of extension packages to women?

Include in the section the following issues:

• a brief evaluation of what you feel the acceptance of packages you introduced have been;

• possible issues to include in the package and how they would benefit women;

• further investigations required to decide whether to include them or not.

Keg points Diary - Developing Appropriate packages

Key Learning Points

Potential Applications

Section 1
Technical content of extension packages

Section 2
Access to credit

Section 3
Developing extension packages appropriate for rural women

Module 4 Working with rural women in practice

Working with rural women in practice

Section 1 Contacting rural women

Contacting rural women

Having analysed some of the problems faced by women farmers and having become more aware of the various constraints which prevent women from becoming more involved in extension activities, you might by now be inclined to I think that these issues represent insurmountable obstacles. On the contrary, the exact identification of the specific constraint allows YOU to find ways to overcome it. This section provides you with some examples of ways to overcome cultural barriers and to find, in each case, the most appropriate approach.

Constraints in Working with Women

In small groups, discuss the following points:

• What, if any, social or cultural constraints exist in the area where you work or will be working that might limit your ability to work with rural women?

• Have you experienced the constraint yourself or just heard about it?

• What was the evidence of these communication barriers?

• What did you try to do to overcome it?

Be prepared to briefly present some the results of your analysis.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Discuss the Following Case Study in Small Groups:

In the area where you have recently been assigned, there seems to be no apparent restrictions to women talking with men who are not part of the family. The impression is, however that for strong cultural reasons, it is very hard for a man not known to the community to gain the confidence of women. You are aware that there have been warnings from a nearby area of the possibility of an epidemic of a goat disease spreading. To contain it, it is crucial to get women to implement the advice you have to give them. There are no women extension agents in your area. Which approach would you follow?

Be prepared to briefly present some the results of your analysis.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 2 Time and location of extension activities

Time and location of extension activities

This section aims to help you gain a fuller understanding of the time and mobility constraints faced by women farmers, and their implications for participation in extension activities. Through discussion you should get enough ideas to be able to plan your future extension activities with rural women in such a way that the impact of these constraints is minimized.

Time Constraints

In small groups, develop a list of reasons why rural women may have time constraints.

Reason for time constraints

After a plenary session in which you will hear the points developed by the other groups, revise your list to include any points you might have missed out.

For each of the points listed, discuss what action can be taken to reduce their impact. You may wish to split this into:

• actions to be taken by rural women (individually or in groups);

• actions to be taken by the extension agent (individual field workers or the extension service).

Reason for time constraints

Action to reduce its impact

Be prepared to present your findings to the class.

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Mobility Constraints

In small groups, develop a list of reasons why rural women may have mobility constraints.

Reason for time constraints

After a plenary session in which you will hear the points developed by the other groups, revise your list to include any points you might have missed out.

For each of the points listed, discuss what action could be taken to reduce their impact. You may wish to split this into:

• actions to be taken by rural women (individually or in groups);

• actions to be taken by the extension agent (individual field workers or the extension service).

Reason for time constraints

Action to reduce its impact

Be prepared to present your findings to the class.

(write here and important points raised during the discussion)

Time and Mobility Constraints

You are an field worker in charge of women extension activities in Sierra Leone. Some investigations have shown this to be the most common daily schedule for rural women in your area. How would you plan your extension activities?

Sierra Leone: One Woman's Day

4.00 to 5.30:

Fish in local pond.

5.30 to 6.00:

Carry water and firewood.

6.00 to 8.00:

Light fire, heat washing water, cook breakfast, clean dishes, sweep compound.

8.00 to 1 1.00:

Work In rice fields with baby on back and a four-year old son.

I 1.00 to 12.00:

Collect berries, leaves and bark; carry water.

12.00 to 14.00:

Process and prepare food, cook lunch, wash dishes.

14.00 to 15.00:

Wash clothes, carry water, clean and smoke fish.

15.00 to 17.00:

Work in gardens.

17.00 to 18.00:

Fish in local pond.

18.00 to 20.00:

Process and prepare food, cook dinner.

20.00 to 21.00:

Clean dishes, clean children.

21.00 to 23.00:

Converse around fire while shelling seeds and making fish nets.

(Source: Restoring the Balance, FAO.)

(write here any important points raised during the discussion)

Section 3 Communication methods

Communication methods

While the basic principles behind conventional extension methods are the same for a target audience of rural women as they are for men, there are a number of considerations which can enhance their effectiveness when working with some women. This section aims at highlighting these aspects.

Women in mixed groups

Discuss, in small groups, how women's participation in a mixed group can be increased. Include all different mixed group extension activities in the discussion. Be prepared to present the results of your discussion.

In small groups, discuss one of the following issues and be prepared to present. the results of your analysis:

1) Traditional media

Analyse traditional media in your areas (types, popularity, use, skills required, etc.) and discuss the possible uses of these media for extension

2) Constraints on use of other media

List extension media with which you are familiar and discuss the following questions:

• How might women's access to these media be restricted in your areas?

• How could the restrictions be overcome?

3) Full day extension activities

Which particular constraints have you noticed in your area which prevent women from participating in field days, tours and training courses? What could be done to improve women's participation in these activities?

4) Constraints on use of other extension activities

List extension methods with which you are familiar and discuss the following questions:

• How might women's access to these methods be restricted in your areas?

• How could the restrictions be overcome?

(write here and important points raised during the discussion)

Section 4 Women's groups

Women's groups

One of the most successful ways of working with rural women is through groups. Meeting with groups of women is culturally and socially acceptable in most places and can overcome even the most rigid taboos. In addition to these organizational aspects, the effectiveness of groups relates to the enhanced confidence and support that individuals gain through it, as well as to the improved understanding gained by comparing each others experiences.

This section explores the advantages of working with women's groups and analyses some practical aspects in both working with existing groups and in setting up new ones.

Working with Women's Groups

In small groups, discuss one of the following points:

• characteristics of existing women's groups in your area and ways to involve them in extension activities;

• strategies to form new women's groups.

Be prepared to present the results of your discussion.

(write here and important points raised during the discussion)

Individual exercise: Develop a plan

Individual exercise

You should now be in a position to develop the last part of your action plan.

Whenever possible, develop the plan starting from a specific problem you have encountered, and plan the action you feel is necessary to improve the situation.

Which specific actions will improve your contacts with rural women? Are there any cultural or social barriers preventing you from talking to them? How can these be overcome?

If you already have a good understanding of your target group, you might be able to plan actions you can implement to reduce women's time and mobility constraints in your area. In most cases, however, you will lack this information and at this stage you should instead plan the type of information you will require. You may also do a tentative plan of specific actions and assess its feasibility once you have collected the information required.

Which communication methods work best with your target group? Have you noticed any differences in conducting the same activity for men and for women? How can their effectiveness with women be improved?

Also analyse the possibility of working with groups. Which steps do you need to plan at this stage? Steps will very according to whether you have already been working with a group; or if you haven't, but think it is possible to work with existing groups; or if you think it would be a good idea, but there are no existing groups.

At the end of the plan developed so hr. put a schedule of activities you intend to do. Fix dates as far as possible and assess the risks which may limit their successful implementation. An example of a format to use could be the following:

Action

Time

People involved

Risk

Key points Diary - Module 4: Working with Rural Women

Key Learning Points

Potential Applications

Section 1
Contacting rural women

Section 2
Time and location of extension activities

Section 3
Communication methods

Section 4
Women's groups

Area	X of Men	% of Women
World
your estimate
class average
official figure
Your Region
your estimate
class average
official figure
Your Country
your estimate
class average
official figure

Problem/constraint	Reason(s) for the problem
1. Time related: - - -
2. Mobility related: - - -
3. Credit related: - - -
4. Other problems: - - -

	Key Learning Points	Potential Applications
Section 1 Women in agriculture and rural development
Section 2 Barriers to women's involvement in extension
Section 3 Reaching women farmers: the difficulties faced by extension services

	Key Learning Points	Potential Applications
Section 1 What information is needed
Section 2 Gender and situation analysis

Positive	Negative
eg. committed official to assess the contractual services provided	eg. Indebtedness


etc.	etc.

	Key Learning Points	Potential Applications
Section 1 Technical content of extension packages
Section 2 Access to credit
Section 3 Developing extension packages appropriate for rural women

Reason for time constraints	Action to reduce its impact

4.00 to 5.30:	Fish in local pond.
5.30 to 6.00:	Carry water and firewood.
6.00 to 8.00:	Light fire, heat washing water, cook breakfast, clean dishes, sweep compound.
8.00 to 1 1.00:	Work In rice fields with baby on back and a four-year old son.
I 1.00 to 12.00:	Collect berries, leaves and bark; carry water.
12.00 to 14.00:	Process and prepare food, cook lunch, wash dishes.
14.00 to 15.00:	Wash clothes, carry water, clean and smoke fish.
15.00 to 17.00:	Work in gardens.
17.00 to 18.00:	Fish in local pond.
18.00 to 20.00:	Process and prepare food, cook dinner.
20.00 to 21.00:	Clean dishes, clean children.
21.00 to 23.00:	Converse around fire while shelling seeds and making fish nets.

	Key Learning Points	Potential Applications
Section 1 Contacting rural women
Section 2 Time and location of extension activities
Section 3 Communication methods
Section 4 Women's groups