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With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

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researcher spotlight

Samuel Benin

Samuel Benin is the Acting Director for Africa in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit. He conducts research on national strategies and public investment for accelerating food systems transformation in Africa and provides analytical support to the African Union’s CAADP Biennial Review.

Where we work

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Where we work

IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 80 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

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Innovation Policy and Scaling

Catherine Ragasa

Senior Research Fellow

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Bio

Catherine Ragasa is a Senior Research Fellow in the Innovation Policy and Scaling Unit at IFPRI. She is an agricultural and applied economist analyzing policies and institutions affecting innovation, productivity growth, and transformation of agrifood systems. Prior to joining IFPRI, she worked for five years in the Agriculture and Rural Development Department at the World Bank, Washington, DC, focusing on agricultural innovation systems, value chains, and gender and inclusion in agriculture. She has also led several large-scale household and firm-level surveys in various countries and managed research programs and grants while at the World Bank and IFPRI. Catherine received her PhD in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University in 2008 and holds a master’s in Economics from the University of the Philippines-Diliman.

Publications

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Publications

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Journal Article

Women’s seed entrepreneurship in aquaculture, maize, and poultry value chains in Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania

2024Farnworth, Cathy Rozel; Galiè, Alessandra; Gumucio, Tatiana; Jumba, Humphrey; Kramer, Berber; Ragasa, Catherine
Details

Women’s seed entrepreneurship in aquaculture, maize, and poultry value chains in Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania

Seed systems are essential to bring good genetic material to farmers. Women farmers, however, have benefited less than men farmers from seed systems in low and middle income countries. We identify factors that inhibit and promote women’s success in seed businesses through three case studies of women’s and men’s entrepreneurship across seed-related value chains and country contexts: tilapia seed production in Ghana, marketing and trading of improved maize and sorghum seeds in Kenya, and chicken seed dissemination in Tanzania. Applying a gender lens, we use key informant interviews and focus group discussions to analyze women’s and men’s motivations to engage in seed businesses, the challenges they confront to start and build their enterprises, and prospects for sustainability and continued success. We use quantitative data to characterize the levels of empowerment of the agripreneurs sampled. For women, the results show that the social normative context of the sector is critical. Time flexibility and profitability are important considerations for women’s engagement. Furthermore, across all three country cases, family and external support are frequently key to women’s participation and success in seed agripreneurship. The article discusses the importance of government bodies, NGOs, and donors in challenging the normative context around gender resource gaps, as well as provide technical packages and training to develop business acumen. Supporting change of restrictive gender norms in non-threatening ways – such as ICTs – is key.

Year published

2024

Authors

Farnworth, Cathy Rozel; Galiè, Alessandra; Gumucio, Tatiana; Jumba, Humphrey; Kramer, Berber; Ragasa, Catherine

Citation

Farnworth, Cathy Rozel; Galie, Alessandra; Gumucio, Tatiana; Jumba, Humphrey; Kramer, Berber; and Ragasa, Catherine. 2024. Women’s seed entrepreneurship in aquaculture, maize, and poultry value chains in Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems 8: 1198130. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2024.1198130

Country/Region

Ghana; Kenya

Keywords

Tanzania; Africa; Eastern Africa; Southern Africa; Western Africa; Women; Seed Industry; Aquaculture; Maize; Poultry

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2024.1198130 Source record

Project

Sustainable Animal Productivity

Record type

Journal Article

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Journal Article

Towards gender equality in forestry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture

2024Elias, Marlène; Zaremba, Haley; Tavenner, Katie; Ragasa, Catherine; Valencia, Ana Maria Paez; Choudhury, Afrina; de Haan, Nicoline
Details

Towards gender equality in forestry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture

The forestry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture sectors are critical for sustaining rural livelihoods and achieving food and nutrition security around the world. Yet, these sectors are marred by significant gender and social inequalities. This review examines gender gaps in these sectors and what has worked to reduce inequalities. We show that gender norms underpin the invisibility, undervaluation, and weight of women’s labor; rural women’s typically limited and precarious control over resources; gender-unequal influence over decision-making and agency; and gender-blind and discriminatory policies, data systems, and governance in these sectors. We evidence the diverse and multipronged strategies that have been used to lift these barriers, from the individual-to the system-level and spanning informal to formal institutions, to promote gender equality.

Year published

2024

Authors

Elias, Marlène; Zaremba, Haley; Tavenner, Katie; Ragasa, Catherine; Valencia, Ana Maria Paez; Choudhury, Afrina; de Haan, Nicoline

Citation

Elias, Marlène; Zaremba, Haley; Zaremba, Haley; Ragasa, Catherine; Valencia, Ana Maria Paez; Choudhury, Afrina; and de Haan, Nicoline. 2024. Towards gender equality in forestry, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture. Global Food Security 41(June 2024): 100761. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2024.100761

Keywords

Aquaculture; Fisheries; Forestry; Gender Equality; Livestock; Women’s Empowerment

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-NC-ND-4.0

Links

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2024.100761 Source record

Project

Gender Equality

Record type

Journal Article

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Journal Article

Bottom-up approaches and decentralized extension structures for improving access to and quality of extension services and technology adoption: Multi-level analysis from Malawi

2024Ragasa, Catherine; Alvarez-Mingote, Cristina; McNamara, Paul
Details

Bottom-up approaches and decentralized extension structures for improving access to and quality of extension services and technology adoption: Multi-level analysis from Malawi

This paper looks at village agriculture committees, model villages, and stakeholder panels at various levels as participatory and decentralized structures for improving demand articulation and accountability in agricultural extension service provision in Malawi. It uses various datasets including nationally representative household and community surveys, a survey of service providers, a survey of representatives from the various structures, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews. It employs various estimation methods including matching techniques, matching plus regression adjustments, and an instrumental variables approach. Results show diverse experiences and functionality of these structures. Contrary to earlier reports, most of these structures are active, except for district stakeholder panels (DSPs), of which only about a quarter are active. Similarly, most of them provide a platform for discussion and feedback on service providers and the quality of their advice, except for DSPs. However, most structures were given poor ratings in terms of their responsiveness to the concerns and issues raised. Household participation in village development or agriculture committees is strongly associated with better household outcome indicators. These village committees, if they are active and responsive to farmers’ expressed concerns and needs, can contribute to better community-level outcomes. Results show that these village-level structures matter and that strengthening them is key to addressing their long-term functionality. On the other hand, a model village concept that focuses on an integrated approach to solving communities’ challenges is not associated with improved community outcome indicators; therefore, its implementation should be reviewed and improved to contribute to development outcomes.

Year published

2024

Authors

Ragasa, Catherine; Alvarez-Mingote, Cristina; McNamara, Paul

Citation

Ragasa, Catherine; Alvarez-Mingote, Cristina; and McNamara, Paul. Bottom-up approaches and decentralized extension structures for improving access to and quality of extension services and technology adoption: Multi-level analysis from Malawi. European Journal of Development Research. Article in press. First published online on April 18, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41287-024-00627-y

Country/Region

Malawi

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Eastern Africa; Agriculture; Stakeholders; Agricultural Extension Systems; Surveys; Capacity Development

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Links

https://doi.org/10.1057/s41287-024-00627-y Source record

Project

Excellence in Agronomy

Record type

Journal Article

Blogs

WEAGov: A new conceptual framework to assess women’s empowerment in agricultural governance
IFPRI Blog
 | 
December 30, 2022

WEAGov: A new conceptual framework to assess women’s empowerment in agricultural governance

By Catherine Ragasa, Jordan Kyle, Sarah Eissler, and Patricia Kristjanson

Developing a tool to assess gender and policymaking.

Survey: COVID-19 undermines incomes, livelihoods in rural Myanmar
IFPRI Blog
 | 
May 14, 2021

Survey: COVID-19 undermines incomes, livelihoods in rural Myanmar

By Catherine Ragasa, Isabel Lambrecht, and Michael Wang

Mobility restrictions and market disruptions hit farming households hard.

How to ensure effective government responses as COVID-19 spreads to rural areas
IFPRI Blog
 | 
June 22, 2020

How to ensure effective government responses as COVID-19 spreads to rural areas

By Katrina Kosec and Catherine Ragasa

Rural residents face a distinct set of pandemic challenges.

Events

ICTforAg 2024: Localizing impact
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

May 28, 2024, 9:00 – 5:00 pm

ICTforAg 2024: Localizing impact

Event: May 28, 2024 – 9:00am to 5:00pm EDT. This event explores the localization of ICT, responsible AI in agriculture, the potential for AI to increase farm profitability, empowering citizen science, and harnessing digital solutions for sustainable and regenerative farming practices.

From Research to Impact: Towards just and Resilient Agri-food Systems
IFPRI Program/Country Event

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October 9 to 12, 2023

From Research to Impact: Towards just and Resilient Agri-food Systems

Conference: October 09, 2023 – 9:00 AM to October 12, 2023 – 6:00 PM IST. IFPRI is participating in the 2023 annual CGIAR gender research conference will take place in New Delhi, India.

UNFSS Independent Dialogue: The Critical Role of Agricultural Extension in Advancing the 2030 Agenda: Lessons from the Field and Empirical Evidence
IFPRI Program/Country Event

 | 

August 6, 2021, 7:00 – 9:30 am

UNFSS Independent Dialogue: The Critical Role of Agricultural Extension in Advancing the 2030 Agenda: Lessons from the Field and Empirical Evidence

Virtual Event: AUG 6, 2021 – 07:00 AM to 09:30 AM EDT. The objective of this dialogue is to come to a common understanding of how extension can contribute to the SDGs and adapt to future needs. 

News

September 12, 2020 | In the News

Aquaculture experts train Ghanaian small fish farm operators (Aquaculture Magazine)

Aquaculture Magazine published an article on how fish farmers in Ghana are being trained to improve the adoption of good aquaculture practices, including the use of high-quality fingerlings. “The training manuals and extension materials used in the training sessions were carefully crafted by 15 experts with diverse background and experience in aquaculture production including those in the Marine […]

September 15, 2020 | In the News

Bright Yeboah: Ghana’s Aquaculture industry set on a recovery path after a double blow (My Joy Online) 

My Joy (Ghana) published an article that after a decade of tremendous growth in production, Ghana’s tilapia farmers have been hit with severe setbacks in the last two years and those setbacks are due to disease.  Poor biosecurity measures are exposing most farms to this tragedy.  Senior Research Fellow  and project lead on the TiSeed, Catherine Ragasa says, “a lot […]

March 01, 2019 | Press Release

Project to Improve Tilapia Seed Launched in Accra

Washington, D.C.: Over the past decade, Ghana’s tilapia farming has experienced tremendous growth in production, contributing to improved incomes for the industry and animal protein for consumers (according to a 2018 study by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)). But loses of over 100 tonnes of cage-farmed fish in the Lake Volta region in […]