Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development

Developing seed systems that work for everyone is important for food security, climate adaptation, and agricultural development. As this guideline has presented, achieving this requires a deliberate and systemic shift from gender-blind approaches to those that are genuinely gender-responsive. The pe...

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Autores principales: Bomuhangi, Allan, Yila, Jummai, Puskur, Ranjitha, Khan, Afreen
Formato: Informe técnico
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Rice Research Institute 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179376
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author Bomuhangi, Allan
Yila, Jummai
Puskur, Ranjitha
Khan, Afreen
author_browse Bomuhangi, Allan
Khan, Afreen
Puskur, Ranjitha
Yila, Jummai
author_facet Bomuhangi, Allan
Yila, Jummai
Puskur, Ranjitha
Khan, Afreen
author_sort Bomuhangi, Allan
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Developing seed systems that work for everyone is important for food security, climate adaptation, and agricultural development. As this guideline has presented, achieving this requires a deliberate and systemic shift from gender-blind approaches to those that are genuinely gender-responsive. The persistent exclusion of women from key seed sector functions, ranging from varietal development and production to distribution and governance, comes at a high cost, resulting in lower productivity, weakened resilience, and forgone economic gains.   The evidence and actions presented here demonstrate that change is possible. Through reorienting seed sector ambitions and designing gender-responsive interventions, the specific barriers women face can be addressed. This means moving beyond simply ensuring women have access to seed. It requires actively supporting their roles as seed entrepreneurs, ensuring their trait preferences shape breeding programs, tailoring services to their needs, and guaranteeing they have a voice in the policies and organizations that govern the seed sector. The successful examples from Syria, Burkina Faso, India, Uganda, and elsewhere prove that when space is intentionally created for women's knowledge and leadership, the entire system benefits.   Operationalizing this change rests on foundational principles: dismantling structural barriers, using an intersectional lens, integrating interventions across all seed functions, and shifting the focus from women's access to their agency and control. Supporting this, a robust monitoring and evaluation framework is crucial for tracking progress, ensuring accountability, and continuously learning from experience.   Transforming seed systems is thus not just a technical challenge; it is a social and economic imperative. Gender-responsive seed systems are not optional.  Embedding gender analysis into every function of the seed sector is a practical pathway to building seed systems that are not only more equitable but also more effective, efficient, and sustainable. “When seed systems work for women, they work better for everyone.”
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spelling CGSpace1793762026-01-06T02:04:43Z Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development An IRRI - Inclusive Delivery Area of Work Technical Guideline Bomuhangi, Allan Yila, Jummai Puskur, Ranjitha Khan, Afreen seed systems gender-responsive approaches agricultural productivity food security innovation adoption climate resilience smallholders seed development guidelines Developing seed systems that work for everyone is important for food security, climate adaptation, and agricultural development. As this guideline has presented, achieving this requires a deliberate and systemic shift from gender-blind approaches to those that are genuinely gender-responsive. The persistent exclusion of women from key seed sector functions, ranging from varietal development and production to distribution and governance, comes at a high cost, resulting in lower productivity, weakened resilience, and forgone economic gains.   The evidence and actions presented here demonstrate that change is possible. Through reorienting seed sector ambitions and designing gender-responsive interventions, the specific barriers women face can be addressed. This means moving beyond simply ensuring women have access to seed. It requires actively supporting their roles as seed entrepreneurs, ensuring their trait preferences shape breeding programs, tailoring services to their needs, and guaranteeing they have a voice in the policies and organizations that govern the seed sector. The successful examples from Syria, Burkina Faso, India, Uganda, and elsewhere prove that when space is intentionally created for women's knowledge and leadership, the entire system benefits.   Operationalizing this change rests on foundational principles: dismantling structural barriers, using an intersectional lens, integrating interventions across all seed functions, and shifting the focus from women's access to their agency and control. Supporting this, a robust monitoring and evaluation framework is crucial for tracking progress, ensuring accountability, and continuously learning from experience.   Transforming seed systems is thus not just a technical challenge; it is a social and economic imperative. Gender-responsive seed systems are not optional.  Embedding gender analysis into every function of the seed sector is a practical pathway to building seed systems that are not only more equitable but also more effective, efficient, and sustainable. “When seed systems work for women, they work better for everyone.” 2025 2026-01-05T06:57:58Z 2026-01-05T06:57:58Z Report https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179376 en Open Access application/pdf International Rice Research Institute Bomuhangi A., Yila, J., Puskur, R., Khan, A. (2025) Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development. An IRRI- Inclusive Delivery Area of Work Technical Guideline. International Rice Research Institute, Philippines. 23 p.
spellingShingle seed systems
gender-responsive approaches
agricultural productivity
food security
innovation adoption
climate resilience
smallholders
seed development
guidelines
Bomuhangi, Allan
Yila, Jummai
Puskur, Ranjitha
Khan, Afreen
Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title_full Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title_fullStr Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title_full_unstemmed Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title_short Guidelines for gender-responsive seed systems development
title_sort guidelines for gender responsive seed systems development
topic seed systems
gender-responsive approaches
agricultural productivity
food security
innovation adoption
climate resilience
smallholders
seed development
guidelines
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/179376
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