Following national and international recognition as a resource in gender and agriculture expertise, Makerere University, has organized the first of its kind spin-off course for scientists working on the tropical legumes III project at ICRISAT at Forest Cottages, Bukoto-Kampala, Uganda.

The one week workshop organized by College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) together with the School of Women and Gender Studies (SWGS), Makerere University, with funding from ICRISAT, IITA and CIAT, is aimed at offering skills in gender responsive research, tailored to assist agricultural researchers to address gender issues along the design, implementation, evaluation, and communication pathways of their research projects.

Instructors and Participants pose for a group photo after the opening session

The spin-off course is organized under a joint 5 year (2015-2020) Makerere University (Uganda) and Cornell University (USA) joint certificate program in applied gender training for agricultural researchers program titled: GREAT (Gender-responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation); funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The spin-off represents one of the key strategies for sustainability of the GREAT course.

“Since the inception of the GREAT project, there has been an increasing demand of GREAT courses in Sub Saharan Africa and beyond. This is evidence that the GREAT course profile and visibility have increased. For example, in 2017/2018, we were contacted by seven organizations/projects to offer tailored courses, and so far only one (for the ICRISAT/Tropical Legumes III project) has materialized.” remarked Prof. Margaret Mangheni, project Principal Investigator, CAES.

The 6-day workshop commenced on 26th November 2018, gathering 18 researchers (14 male, 4 female; 9 biophysical and 9 social scientists), from Sub-Saharan Africa specifically, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Mali. Participants work in NARs and Universities on various breeding programs under the Tropical Legumes III i.e. groundnuts, cowpeas, common beans and chickpeas. Also in attendance are two ICRISAT staff Dr. Esther Njuguna, the Gender Scientist for East and Southern Africa, and Dr. Edward Bikett

A team of experts from a wide array of disciplinary backgrounds and professional experience both international and national will mentor and support researchers in gender and agriculture, combining theory and practice into a dynamic package, ensuring that learning is practical, grounded and applied. Some of the topics to be covered include unpacking gender and why it matters in agriculture, gender responsive plant breeding: setting breeding priorities, gender responsive agricultural research and principles of qualitative and quantitative gender research among other educational topics in agriculture.

A team of the course instructors from Makerere University

In her remarks, Prof. Mangheni noted that the goal of GREAT is to create inclusive agricultural systems that are able to address the needs and priorities of men and women, such that the breeders and social scientists who work with them on the breeding program ably understand how to make this happen. Therefore, the training is aimed at building researchers and breeders’ capacities on gender responsive research, such that the technologies they develop from their breeding meet the needs of both men and women in the breeding systems of the participating countries.

Assoc. Prof. Margaret Najjingo Mangheni gives an overview of the training

Dr. Esther Njuguna a Gender Scientist at ICRISAT noted that considering the GREAT team’s expertise, they requested for a training, to enhance researchers’ and breeders’ gender responsive agricultural knowledge. “We felt gender is a means to delivering outcomes for both men and women and therefore, we needed training on gender responsive research; specifically what it means, how it is practically done, and how to design gendered data questions, research designs and data analysis. If you do not consider gender, you’re not only failing to consider interest of half the community but failing to have a way of delivering on your objectives.”

Dr. Esther Njuguna speaks during the GREAT TLIII Course opening ceremony at Forest Cottages, Kampala Uganda

While sharing their expectations, participants hoped to learn and apply all that they will have learned from the training to transform their breeding programs and the agricultural systems in their countries.

Some of the participants who attended the GREAT TLIII Course sharing their views

Considering that one of GREAT’s objectives is to train for practice, participants were implored to apply what they would have learned.

L-R Prof. Grace Bantebya K. and Dr. Peace Musiimenta from the School of Women and Gender Studies taking participants through the different course sessions

GREAT is supporting Makerere University (MAK) to become a Centre of Excellence for gender-responsive agricultural research (GRAR) and training in SSA and this will be achieved through:

1. Raising awareness amongst leaders and staff of CAES and SWGS about GREAT and the need for gender-responsive agricultural research and training within Makerere, and; Visibility of Makerere’s expertise in the area of GRAR and training. This will be aimed at creating a supportive environment for institutionalization of the GREAT course, and appreciation of the importance of interdisciplinary research in gender and agriculture.
2. Building the capacity of Makerere in the area of gender and agriculture. 

The workshop will run up to Saturday 1st December 2018. Please follow the hash tag #GreatTLIIICourse on all our social media pages for timely updates.