Integration of Nutrition and Gender for Sustainable Agriculture

Team Leader Dr. Lutful Hassan

ProfessorGenetics And Plant Breeding

Bangladesh Agriculture University, Mymensingh

Goal 1 For women farmers to adopt STRVs and Nutritional Rice and demonstrate their need

Increase farmers’ awareness of STRVs and Nutritional Rice and their benefits over traditional/older varieties

• GOAL 1

• CHALLENGE

- Consultation with women farmers

- Information sharing on benefits

• ACTION

Goal 1

What message/s to disseminate? (Identify key messages) testimonials of farmers from previous phases; benefits/advantages of STRVs and Nutritional Rice Who should provide these messages? (Which individuals or groups would the messages come from?) farmer partners from previous phases; researchers/scientists

How do we provide these messages? In what format? face-to-face meetings farmer field days field demonstrations print materials

How to validate and evaluate?

Goal 2 For women farmers’ attitudes be changed

positively leading to their active promotion on the

use of STRVs and Nutritional Rice

• GOAL 2

Develop positive attitudes of women farmers on the

adoption of as well as on sustainable use of these

varieties

Get or document farmer testimonials

regarding their demands for seeds

• CHALLENGE

• ACTION

Strategies planned

Partnership &

Convergence NGOs, women collectives, community

institutions, govt. programmers

Alternative models for seed introduction & proliferation

informal seed multiplication through women led community institutions

Women focused training/capacity

building programmers

around improved seed technology

Learning and sharing

through participatory gender research and documentation around seed interventions

Initiatives so far

• Partnership and Pilots of seed interventions

• Models of informal and revolving models of seed distribution

• Models of community seed bank and business piloted with Private Sectors

• Improved seed storage (post harvest-super bag) piloted for introduced seeds

• Trainings on ‘quality seed production’ for female farmers

Immediate action plans • Working with female farmers through NGOs for the

promotion of To expand or replicate successful pilots

• Focus: Economically fragile regions and stress prone regions

• Covering more number of Private sectors & NGOs (Preference to the female lead organizations)

• Focus interventions:

community seed bank

informal seed distribution

collective/individual entrepreneurship/business

Immediate action plans

• Estimating seasonal demand of different varieties based on local condition

• Strengthening the supply/procurement network for quality seed

• Planning and executing seasonal trainings including ToTs around seed technology- seed selection, production, treatment, storage, & nursery management etc.

• Female trained farmers should be included as trainers

• Technical guidance, collaboration and grounding of M&E and other studies in the targeted zones.

Case Study: The outputs/results are as follows: • High yielding nutrition rich rice production was achieved

• High yielding nutrition rich rice variety in Mymensingh sadar women’s farmers were introduced and presumably it contribute to the production of high yield which will increased household incomes, better food security and nutrition and more vibrant local and national economies. In addition, increasing women’s ability to generate income can have a positive effects on communities.

• Female farmer’s awareness was created.

• 5 batches of female farmers (5 female farmers per batch) were trained.

Benefit/outcomes: The benefit/outcome are as follows:

1. From the result is clear that if female farmer’s cultivate crops then their production could translate into increased household income, better food security and nutrition.

2. Increasing women’s ability to generate income can have a positive ripple effect on communities.

Seed Dissemination of Nutritional Rice

Seed Dissemination of Nutrition Rice

Training of Women farmers

Few Selected Women Farmers