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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.

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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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Projects

Women’s empowerment in agrifood governance (WEAGov)

The Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) is an assessment tool developed by IFPRI and partners to help evaluate the extent to which women are empowered across the policy cycle related to agrifood systems. WEAGov provides a way for national policymakers, civil society organizations, and researchers to identify gaps and opportunities to raise women’s voice and agency at different stages of the national policy cycle and provides a basis for monitoring progress in women’s empowerment in agrifood systems governance and related indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

CLICK TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WEAGov (INTERACTIVE)

 

Project duration: 2022-2024

Contact

Catherine Ragasa

Jordan Kyle

Donors and funders

CGIAR Trust Fund

Project partners

African Agricultural Technology Foundation

Publications

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Brief

WEAGov Nigeria pilot study: Findings and policy implications

2023Ragasa, Catherine; Kyle, Jordan; Onoja, Anthony; Achika, Anthonia I.; Adejoh, Stella O.; Onyenekwe, Chinasa S.; Koledoye, Gbenga; Ujor, Gloria C.; Nwali, Perpetual
Details

WEAGov Nigeria pilot study: Findings and policy implications

WEAGov assesses the state of women’s voice and agency in national agrifood policymaking. Like IFPRI’s Kaleidoscope Model, it adopts a policy process approach, looking at every stage of the policy cycle — from why certain issues become salient and how policy solutions to address them are designed, to the organizational strategies and budgetary outlays that shape policy implementation, to how policies are assessed against their objectives. Within each of these stages, WEAGov examines whether women are being considered, whether their voices are included, and whether they are influencing actions and decisions.

Year published

2023

Authors

Ragasa, Catherine; Kyle, Jordan; Onoja, Anthony; Achika, Anthonia I.; Adejoh, Stella O.; Onyenekwe, Chinasa S.; Koledoye, Gbenga; Ujor, Gloria C.; Nwali, Perpetual

Citation

Ragasa, Catherine; and Kyle, Jordan. 2023. WEAGov Nigeria pilot study: Findings and policy implications. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Western Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Africa; Women’s Empowerment; Policies; Agrifood Systems

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open AccessCC-BY-4.0

Source

Source record

Project

Gender Equality

Record type

Brief

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Working Paper

Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) assessment framework: A pilot study in Nigeria

2023Ragasa, Catherine; Kyle, Jordan; Onoja, Anthony Ojonimi; Achika, Anthonia I.; Adejoh, Stella O.; Onyenekwe, Chinasa S; Koledoye, Gbenga; Ujor, Gloria C.; Nwali, Perpetual Nkechi
Details

Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) assessment framework: A pilot study in Nigeria

Women’s equal participation and leadership in political and public life can boost a country’s long-run economic growth, foster social inclusion, and help countries reach the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Beyond these important outcomes, women’s inclusion in public life is a basic human right: women deserve a role in making decisions, controlling resources, and shaping policies. Despite the importance of women’s voices and their empowerment in policy and decision-making processes, it is far easier to lament their absence than to define and measure them. We know that political empowerment, measured in terms of the share of women in government ministries and parliament, is low and is the weakest dimension in the Global Gender Gap. Yet such national statistics, while important and informative, risk mismeasuring women’s participation and influence in public life and do not give policymakers and advocacy organizations traction on specific gaps and opportunities for increasing women’s voice in policymaking. With this situation in mind and focusing on agrifood systems, which are crucial for delivering the SDGs, we developed an assessment framework—Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov)— to assess women’s voice and empowerment in national policy processes in agrifood systems. This paper presents the first pilot-testing of WEAGov in Nigeria. In this paper, we present how the WEAGov tool works in the Nigerian context, analyze the data, and provide diagnostic on the status of women’s voice and empowerment in the agrifood policy process. As discussed in this paper, the pilot-testing in Nigeria provides useful lessons toward improving the measurement for future use and provides valuable policy insights on critical entry points for increasing women’s voice and empowerment in the national agrifood policy process.

Year published

2023

Authors

Ragasa, Catherine; Kyle, Jordan; Onoja, Anthony Ojonimi; Achika, Anthonia I.; Adejoh, Stella O.; Onyenekwe, Chinasa S; Koledoye, Gbenga; Ujor, Gloria C.; Nwali, Perpetual Nkechi

Citation

Ragasa, Catherine; Kyle, Jordan; Onoja, Anthony Ojonimi; Achika, Anthonia I.; Adejoh, Stella O.; Onyenekwe, Chinasa S; et al. 2023. Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) assessment framework: A pilot study in Nigeria. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2222. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.137059

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Africa; Sub-saharan Africa; Western Africa; Women’s Empowerment; Policies; Agrifood Systems; Governance; Gender

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Links

https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.137059 Source record

Project

Gender Equality

Record type

Working Paper

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Conference Proceedings

Stakeholder workshop report: Women’s empowerment in agrifood systems governance (WEAGov) technical workshop: Nigeria pilot study

2023Kyle, Jordan; Ragasa, Catherine; Carrillo, Lucia
Details

Stakeholder workshop report: Women’s empowerment in agrifood systems governance (WEAGov) technical workshop: Nigeria pilot study

Inclusive governance and policies can promote adaptation to climate change as well as resilience of women in the agrifood system. The Women’s impowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) is a diagnostic tool developed by IFPRI to help evaluate the extent to which women are empowered across the policy cycle related to agrifood systems. WEAGov provides a way to identify gaps and opportunities to raise women’s voice and agency at different stages of the policy cycle, and provides a basis for monitoring progress in women’s empowerment in agrifood systems governance over time. The workshop described here took place on May 11, 2023 in Abuja, Nigeria and included policymakers, researchers, and private sector representatives. The workshop familiarized stakeholders with the WEAGov assessment framework and collected valuable inputs and feedback on a recent WEAGov pilot study conducted in Nigeria. While participants largely validated the WEAGov indicators, they recommended key areas for improved measurement which will be incorporated into the assessment framework.

Year published

2023

Authors

Kyle, Jordan; Ragasa, Catherine; Carrillo, Lucia

Citation

Kyle, Jordan; Ragasa, Catherine; and Carrillo, Lucia. 2023. Stakeholder workshop report: Women’s empowerment in agrifood systems governance (WEAGov) technical workshop: Nigeria pilot study. Gender Equality Report July 2023. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.136826

Country/Region

Nigeria

Keywords

Africa; Western Africa; Women; Gender; Food Systems; Women’s Empowerment; Governance; Gender Equality; Empowerment; Agrifood Systems

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Links

https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.136826 Source record

Project

Gender Equality

Record type

Conference Proceedings

Blogs

Six big ideas to advance food systems resilience in Nigeria: Bringing CGIAR Initiatives together to foster collaboration and policy coherence
IFPRI Blog
 | 
September 13, 2023

Six big ideas to advance food systems resilience in Nigeria: Bringing CGIAR Initiatives together to foster collaboration and policy coherence

By Katrina Kosec, Jordan Kyle, Evgeniya Anisimova, Lucia Carrillo, and Omobolanle Onilogbo

Stakeholders grapple with rapid change.

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.

Donors

CGIAR Trust Fund

Team members

Jordan Kyle

Jordan Kyle

Research Fellow, Poverty,
Gender, and Inclusion

Jordan Kyle

Jordan Kyle

Research Fellow, Poverty,
Gender, and Inclusion

Other

Related Projects

Topics/Countries

Related links

External Resources

External blogs

On December 6, 2023, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) organized a workshop on Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) Assessment Tool under the CGIAR initiative on Gender Equality with the assistance of the Agricultural Policy Research Network (APRNet). The workshop gathered esteemed experts, policymakers, and stakeholders to deliberate on crucial strategies for enhancing gender inclusivity within Nigeria’s agrifood systems.

External events

On May 12 in Abuja, Nigeria, two CGIAR initiatives – Fragility, Conflict, and Migration (FCM) and National Policies and Strategies (NPS) – brought together policymakers, researchers, and representatives from the private sector and civil society to discuss how to advance food systems resilience amid crises while empowering women and youth, in the context of Nigeria. The workshop featured presentations from six other CGIAR research initiatives working in Nigeria and fostered lively discussions. Participants delved into cutting-edge research outcomes, identifying evidence gaps and potential collaborative avenues.

 

Various

News articles