001 Cammack, D. (1995)

Gender and Emergency Food Aid: A Review of two WFP Operations in Malawi.

Reviews two World Food Programme (WFP) activities that were operating in Malawi in 1995. The study was carried out to determine whether women have benefited from, had control over and access to food aid equally with men. Emphasis during investigations and writing was placed on the gender sensitivity of the institutions involved - WFP, Malawi Government, World Vision and CPAR - on women's participation in project planning and implementation, on staffing of the two programmes, and on the use and control of food at the household and village level.

Location: CSR, Centre for Social Research, box 278, Zomba, Malawi. Email;csr@malawi.net, csr@sdnp.org.mw, csrbasis@malawi.net

Food Security and Gender Disparities in Malawi: A Profile Paper for Gender Targeting by WFP - Malawi.

The profile paper shows gender gaps in the social and economic sectors relevant to food security and statistical data on a number of women and men targeted under the current emergency and development programmes. The gender gaps identified and documented here include access to food, markets, extension services, agricultural inputs, nutritional status, health, education, employment opportunities, income, water and fuel wood, land ownership and decision-making position. It documents the targeting mechanisms for direct female beneficiaries implemented in the current WFP emergency food aid. Evaluates whether the chosen strategies and actions of the WFP Malawi Action Plan will contribute towards narrowing the gender gaps in Malawi.

Location: CSR, Centre for Social Research, box 278, Zomba, Malawi. Email;csr@malawi.net, csr@sdnp.org.mw, csrbasis@malawi.net

003 Chikagwa, I.C.(1989)

The Impact of Irrigation Development on Women Farmers in Malawi.

Assesses the role of women farmers in the irrigation scheme; assess the differential impact of irrigation on women and men in three types of households with respect to time allocation and income from irrigation, evaluate reasons for differential benefits to men and women including factors such as design and implementation; to develop recommendations based on 2 and 3 above. Two irrigation schemes were studied. These were Ngolowindo, established in 1985 and Domasi established in 1973. Twenty-one farmers were selected from Ngolowindo scheme and 105 farmers from Domasi. Total sample for the study was 26 farmers. The study used a questionnaire to gather data. Data were gathered through personal interviews by enumerators. The questionnaire was pretested with a few farmers and an extension worker at Ngolowindo. Along with personal interviews, observations were made during those visits to determine other aspects of the study, such as crops grown, cropping patterns, time use, ownership of equipment and general home improvement. Only 41.9% of the farmers received credit for the rainfall plots. Most women reported that the farm credit was too expensive and therefore decided not to get it while others mentioned that they belonged to clubs that had defaulted. Very few farmers obtained the medium-term credit. In the whole scheme there were only 15 pairs of oxen, all owned by male farmers. No women claimed to have received oxen or implements on credit, although they had applied for them. The two schemes are typical of self-help and government schemes. Both schemes have had positive effects on women's rights to use land by allowing both men and women to apply for plots.

004 Culler, C. J; Matenje, I. C; Patterson, H.(1990)

Survey of Women in Agriculture in Malawi.

Analyses the roles of women in agriculture production including harvesting and post-harvesting activities. It further analyses women's domestic responsibilities and ascertain the effects on agricultural production. It assesses labour and time resources used in agricultural and domestic activities by all family members. The population for this study was rural households within Malawi. The sample was selected to represent the entire nation so that generalization could be made from the results of the survey to Malawi as a whole. The survey used directed random cluster sampling procedure. 18 EPAs were selected purposefully, within each EPA, 2 sections were picked at random. Three questionnaires were used in this survey, namely the household questionnaire which was used to collect quantitative data from male and female farmers. The village leader questionnaire was administered to the village headman or his designee. The third questionnaire was for extension staff. The average number of family members for all households was found to be 5.4, which was higher than that recorded by the 1987 Malawi Housing and Population Census, which was 4.65 family members in the rural areas. Most of the respondents were full-time farmers. 67.3% were engaged in ganyu. More women (70.2%) reported being full time farmers than did men (62.9%). Almost one-quarter of the respondents (22.1%) reported that they were engaged in other occupations besides farming. Men tended to involve themselves more in off-farm activities (25.2%) than wives (20.4%) of FHHs. Women received less schooling in all grades of formal education. However, women participated more frequently in literacy classes than din men. Over two-thirds of the respondents (67.9%) had little or no schooling. Results of this study show that 27.1% of the households were female headed.

Location: BCA/USAID/MOA-WPS, Bunda College of Agriculture, P.O. BOX 219, LILONGWE, Tel: 277 222, Fax:277 403, email: bundalibrary@unima.wn.opc.org,infortech@sdnp.org.mw, USAID, P.O. BOX 30455, LILONGWE, Tel: 772 455, Fax: 773 181-33, email:usaid.gov , Ministry of Agriculture, P.O. BOX 30134, LILONGWE 3, Tel: 789 033, Fax: 789 218-33,email: infortech@sdnp.org,mw

Women Farmers of Malawi: Food Production in Zomba District.

• The study was conducted to find out from women farmers how they were operating in the face of growing land pressures that had forced men to seek employment off the farm, and responding to this situation and what strategies for survival were emerging. Seventy women were interviewed from fifty-four villages within a twenty-mile radius of the Zomba town boundaries. These villages were clustered into 19 geographical groupings, and they fell into eight TA areas. Seven of the interviews were conducted in villages just outside the boundaries of Zomba district, six in Machinga district and one in Chiradzulu district. Interviews were conducted using a questionnaire which covered a wide range of topics but which focused mainly on agricultural production. Most interviews lasted about an hour. All interviews were conducted through a Malawian woman interpreter. The average age of the women was 37.1 years. Only two women under the age of 20 were interviewed and a disproportionately high number (19) of women over fifty. It was found that 31.4% of the women in the sample were living without husbands. Thirty-seven of the women interviewed (53%) had no education at all. Thirty-three had some primary schooling, though none had completed a primary education. The average number of years of school attendance was 1.7. The majority of the women interviewed (57%) felt they had less than sufficient land. Distance of the gardens from the home was not generally seen as a problem. Forty-four women said their gardens were near, fourteen said theirs were some distance away and only two said they were far away. Forty-seven of the women had access to dimba land. These too were not considered to be too far away from home. Because of matrilineal and matrilocal system of land transfers in Zomba district, in nearly all cases men move to their wives' lands on marriage.

Location: CSR/CCL-MC/USAID/BCA, Centre for Social Research, box 278, Zomba, Malawi. Email;csr@malawi.net, csr@sdnp.org.mw, csrbasis@malawi.net, Chancellor College, P.O. BOX 280, ZOMBA, Tel: 265-524 222, Fax: 265-522 046, 265/522 578, email: ccadmin@unima.wn.apc.org, USAID, P.O. BOX 30455, LILONGWE, Tel: 772 455, Fax: 773 181-33, email:usaid.gov, Bunda College of Agriculture, P.O. BOX 219, LILONGWE, Tel: 277 222, Fax:277 403, email: bundalibrary@unima.wn.opc.org,infortech@sdnp.org.mw

Household Food Security and Child Nutrition: The Interaction of Income and Gender of Household Head.

• Evaluates the effects of gender of household head on income, food consumption and nutrition, using data sets from Kenya and Malawi. The data suggest that food security and preschooler nutritional status are influenced by the interaction of income and gender of the head of household rather than simply one or the other. The two case studies found that male-headed households did have a higher average income than the aggregate of female-headed households. Contrary to expectations, however, not all female-headed households are poorer than their male-headed counterparts. The findings suggest that gender may influence the composition of diets within households. An important finding of the studies is that at very low levels of income, certain female-headed households are able to provide no worse and sometimes better levels of nutritional status than wealthier male-headed households.

Location: CSR, Centre for Social Research, box 278, Zomba, Malawi. Email;csr@malawi.net, csr@sdnp.org.mw, csrbasis@malawi.net

Greater Women Participation in the Smallholder Burley Programme.

• Identifies the existing constraints facing women farmers in the production of burley tobacco, data for this activity were collected by FHAs in 3 ADDs, Mzuzu, Kasungu and Blantyre. The choice of ADDs to be sampled depended on the number of women already participating in the smallholder Burley Programme in the ADDs in the 1992/93 growing season. The main data collecting instrument was a questionnaire. The questionnaire was developed jointly by the Women's Programme Section in the Ministry of Agriculture and USAID. Having been developed, the questionnaire was pretested in Nathenje EPA of Lilongwe East RDP of Lilongwe ADD. Four types of farmers were then interviewed:- Women farmers growing burley tobacco in their own right, male farmers growing tobacco, female farmers not growing tobacco and female onnly clubs. There was general lack of supervision in the field when the survey was being conducted. The highest percentage of males use the burley income for soap (80.4%), seconded by for clothing (78.3%) and then for school expenses. They least use it for luxuries (37.0%). Most females use it mainly for school expenses (71.6%), followed by for clothing and then for soap (62.1%), the least use it for luxuries (19.8%). Besides money from burley tobacco, the most important other source of income for the male farmers is from other agricultural sales, 56.5%. For female farmers, in addition to agricultural sales, they also get it from off-farm activities. Untimely input distribution feature high as a constraint by males, seconded by nursery establishment. In addition to the above constraints, female mentioned cost of credit.

008 Namathanga, T.R.; Matabwa, R.C.(1983)

A Case Study of Tasks and Status of Women in Agricultural and Food Systems in Selected Areas of Malawi.

• The study was carried out in 4 villages of central and southern regions of Malawi. These villages were Chalera and Kasisi of Lilongwe, Nkoko in Mulanje and Semu in Thyolo. The sample was composed of 10 women for each village, making a total sample of 40 women. These women were randomly selected. A questionnaire was designed to obtain the information required. It was written in English but translated into Chichewa for ease of communication. The questionnaire was divided into five parts which described tasks in broad categories and the status given in performance of these tasks. The findings show that 100% of the women interviewed participated in food production tasks in a mixed cropping system of agriculture and that all the women participated in general production activities for cash crops such as land preparation, fertilizing, weeding, banking and harvesting. 50-63% of the women do other tasks, such as sowing and transplanting seedlings. The majority, (75-80%) of the women do the topping and dehusking work in tobacco production. The results further indicate that less than 40% of the women participate in livestock production.

Location: BCA, Bunda College of Agriculture, P.O. BOX 219, LILONGWE, Tel: 277 222, Fax:277 403, email: bundalibrary@unima.wn.opc.org,infortech@sdnp.org.mw

Effectiveness of Agricultural Extension Services in Reaching Rural Women with Timely and Appropriate Agricultural Information.

• The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between agricultural extension and women farm ers in Malawi. The study heavily relied on existing information generated by previous studies for its data. The study found that extension advice and credit has mainly been to men. Some of the reasons given for this were that agricultural development strategy favoured those peasant households which could produce maximum benefits. This meant that unpromising/poorer households, and the majority of women belong to this category, were left out; lack of explicit planning for women's involvement in agricultural extension and credit and finally the reinforcing effect of attitudes/prejudices to women - attitudes which see their proper roles as mothers and farmers' wives, and not farmers in their own right.

Location: CSR/CCM-MC, Centre for Social Research, box 278, Zomba, Malawi. Email;csr@malawi.net, csr@sdnp.org.mw, csrbasis@malawi.net, Chancellor College, P.O. BOX 280, ZOMBA, Tel: 265-524 222, Fax: 265-522 046, 265/522 578, email: ccadmin@unima.wn.apc.org

010 Reintsma, M; Lang, P.(1989)

The Impact of Economic and Agricultural Policies on Women in Agriculture in Malawi.

• Examines the impacts of economic policies on women in the agricultural sector in Malawi. The study was undertaken between June and September 1988. The sample comprised of women farmers. The study relied entirely on Secondary data sources as well as interviews with people knowledgeable about the economic policies of the country and the roles of women in the agricultural sector.Malawi export-promotion strategy favoured the growth and development of the estate sub-sector at the expense of smallholders. The consequences of neglecting this sector of community have implication for both economic growth and equity. In addition to high prices, trade liberalization and particularly the closing of some of ADMARC's least profitable buying stations, has resulted in producers in some regions having restricted access to markets for their products.