Gender-responsive maize breeding

Validating a novel genetic technology for hybrid maize seed production under management practices associated with resource-poor farmers in Zimbabwe. Plants, People, Planet. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1002/PPP3.10590 

• A new genetic technology was developed to simplify hybrid maize seed production in sub-Saharan Africa, thereby improving farmers’ access to high quality hybrid seed. Hybrids produced with this technology segregate 50:50 for pollen-producing and non-pollen producing and are designated 50% non-pollen producing (FNP). FNP maize has higher yields in low-input environments. As recycling hybrid maize seed remains a common practice in Zimbabwe, including among resource-poor households, it is important to understand the impact of recycling FNP seed on the yield gains from the FNP technology.

• While recycling hybrid maize seed reduces potential yields due to inbreeding depression, in the years when farmers cannot afford to plant hybrid maize only, recycling non-pollen producing hybrid maize seed conferred a yield benefit of 116 kg ha-1.

• The findings from this study illustrate why and how new technologies should be evaluated under real-world conditions, particularly those used by resource-poor farmers.

Innovative approaches to integrating gender into conventional maize breeding: lessons from the Seed Production Technology for Africa project. Frontiers in Sociology 8, 1254595. 2023. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2023.1254595 

• Community case study documenting efforts to integrate gender into the maize-focused Seed Production Technology for Africa (SPTA) project using innovation history analysis drawing on project documents and the authors’ experiences.

• Active and respectful collaborations between breeders and social scientists, spurred by donor mandates to address gender and social inclusion, was critical.

• SPTA proved to be fertile ground for experimentation and interdisciplinary collaboration around gender and maize breeding, and has provided proof of concept for larger breeding projects seeking to integrate gender considerations.

 Construction of a generalised farm typology to aid selection, targeting and scaling of onfarm research. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 212, 108074. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2023.108074

• Farm typologies are often used to handle the heterogeneity of smallholder farming systems by grouping farms of similar characteristics 

• In this study a unified framework for constructing typologies was developed that is more flexible in terms of the types of variables that can be included, in particular for binary variables such as gender of household head and plot manager.

• An open-source software application that implements this framework available at: https://github.com/KirstyLHassall/TypologyGenerato

Revisiting strategies to incorporate gender-responsiveness into maize breeding in southern Africa. Outlook on Agriculture 51, 178-186. 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/00307270211045410 

• Maize variety and agronomic practices were found to be significant predictors of the gender of plot managers and household heads

• Immediate entry points for gender intentionality in maize breeding include the incorporation of relevant management practices used by women at advanced stages of the breeding pipeline

Gender inclusivity through maize breeding in Africa: A review of the issues and options for future engagement. Outlook on Agriculture 50, 392-405. https://doi.org/10.1177/00307270211058208

• Stock take of knowns and unknowns related to gender-responsive and gender-intentional maize breeding.

• While recent research on farmers’ variety preferences across crops has yielded insights into gender-based differences, evidence of gender-differentiated preferences for maize varieties remains inconclusive. 

• Research priorities to support gender-intentional maize breeding should include a more nuanced understanding of gender relations in maize production and maize seed decision-making, new and more gender-responsive approaches to measuring farmer preferences and seed demand more broadly, and research to address operational challenges in gender intentional breeding.

Challenges for sustainable maize production in sub-Saharan Africa. Journal of Cereal Science 101, 103274. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcs.2021.103274 

• Review of key challenges facing maize production including focus on lower rates of adoption of new hybrid maize varieties by women farmers.