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Cross-Cutting Themes Gender
"We learned things we didn’t know such as how to value our work, since previously we had never placed a price on the work we do.” — female participant, Focus Group Discussions Within PRODUMER’s overall goal of assisting small holder sesame seed producers to achieve improved livelihood and quality of life in a sustainable manner, gender has been a key component as a way to address the inequalities that exist between men and women in Nicaragua. The project aims to assure equal access to project benefits and resources and raise the visibility of the role of women in the agricultural process. PRODUMER technical and management staff are also expected to increase their ability to incorporate a gender focus in all areas of their activities. To support the gender strategy, PRODUMER’s gender specialist developed and administered a series of focus group discussions with male and female producers. The discussions helped highlight the roles of both men and women in contributing to household income. Training sessions have also been provided to the project’s technical and management staff to ensure that a gender focus is involved in all aspect of their work. Environment
While sesame production does not pose a direct threat to the environment, PRODUMER is focused on encouraging technical practices that will help preserve the environment and increase yields for producers. A lack of awareness and knowledge of environmental concerns among producers has led to inadequate land management and cropping practices. Practices such as mono cropping, improper planting techniques and burning of vegetation have resulted in wind and water erosion, declining soil fertility and lower crop yields. Environmental preservation practices promoted by PRODUMER include: crop rotation, cover crops and green fertilizers; reforestation; proper use and disposal of chemicals and the incorporation of crop residues as opposed to burning crops. These practices will help in reducing erosion, reducing silt build up in watersheds, increasing soil bio-diversity and improving soil fertility. Training has been provided to producers in the forms of coursework, demonstration plots, and through support visits to individual producers during the production cycle. In addition to the improved practices for conventional sesame production, PRODUMER will support interested producers in making the transition from conventional to organic production. Certified organic production is an excellent means of preserving the environment and improving profitability of small farmers. |
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