Utilizing Gender Knowledge of Effective Adoption within Cooking Banana and Plantain Value Chain in Murang’a, Kirinyaga and Embu Counties, Kenya

Abstract

Banana is an important source of income for rural, resource poor, smallholder male and female farmers and a staple for urban consumers in Sub-Saharan Africa. Their great potential to alleviate poverty among rural households has not been effectively exploited. Given the gender dynamics that occur in value chains due to commercialization, there is a need for gender responsive adoption of new agricultural technology. Participatory programming is an effective tool to empower all stakeholders. This study sought to establish the uptake and utilization of gender knowledge in the adoption of new tissue culture banana varieties among men and women stakeholders in Murang’a, Kirinyaga and Embu Counties in Kenya. The study further sought to establish effective strategies to enhance efficacy of gender knowledge implementation and sharing within the value chains under the “Climate Smart Banana Project”. This project utilizes a gender responsive participatory approach in introduction of new varieties which are resilient to climate change. Plant breeders produce superior crop varieties that promise higher yields, income, resistance to pests and diseases as well as climate change tolerance. However, gender dynamics within value chains quite often lead to a backlash in optimizing benefits from new varieties. The study applied a mixed method design with qualitative and quantitative data being collected among men and women farmers. The preliminary results have revealed that while policy makers and implementers have higher levels of gender knowledge, male and female farmers’ knowledge is limited and especially lower among male stakeholders. Observably, there is a breakdown in communication regarding gender knowledge from extension officers to farmers. The study thus recommends a structured, participatory, and multi- sectoral approach at county level to offer gender training to all stakeholders in the cooking banana and plantain value chains. Key Words:Gender, knowledge, banana, plantain, value chai