Changing gender and

generational roles in agriculture

and water management:

A new approach

Presented on behalf of

Fraser Sugden &

Barbara Van Koppen

‘Water and climate crisis’ rank in the top

three global

risks

.. and income inequity is also

very high

Global Risks Report 2015, World Economic Forum

A new approach to NRM where..

….a healthy, functioning ecosystem is a prerequisite for

agricultural development, resilient food systems and human

well-being.

“There can be no peace without equitable development; and there can be no development without sustainable management of the environment in a democratic and peaceful space. This shift is an idea whose time has come.”

Wangari Maathi, Nobel Peace Prize Recipient 2004

Gender and Sustainable intensification

Access to resources

Decision-making

Reinvestment

Changing

Demographic change and agriculture

2. Dual roles, dual burdens

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcsYunAH_wo

Dual roles, still no decision-

making

• Traditional gendered access to resources

often despite increasing role of women

Continued importance of multiple use systems

Unclear links between

productive and

reproductive use.

• Infrastructure designed

for a single use is in

practice often used for

non-planned uses (e.g.

canals used for

washing and livestock).

• Community-driven

planning for multi-

purpose infrastructure

is more appropriate.

Homestead as an entry

point

Ways forward

Integrate women more effectively into large bureaucracies in traditional male dominated sectors

Improved decision-making to ensure truly MUS water management for both reproductive and productive use.

Continued openness to radical new forms of land and water management

• New land rights (e.g. recognition of matrilineal societies in Africa, joint titling)

• New approach to land tenure (e.g. collective leasing by women’s groups in India)

• New approach to water management (e.g. women’s led water user associations; women’s control over private water technology for service delivery; fisheries collectives)

wle.cgiar.org/blogs

PROSPEROUS COMMUNITIES. PRODUCTIVE FOOD SYSTEMS. HEALTHY LAND AND WATER