Gender Mainstreaming in the "Integrated Water and Land Management Program" (IWLMP)'s WLE Supported Research Activities

The Activity Summary represents the gender components of several WLE research activities submitted by the IWLMP. Gender mainstreaming in this regard covers a range of activities that focus on integration of gender into research activities, as well as build researchers’ capacity to conduct gender sensitive research in their areas of specialization. The activities will be conducted in 4 countries including Ethiopia, Egypt, Jordan, and Pakistan. Below are broad summaries of the proposed gender activities in the respective countries. A more detailed description of the activities is available in the respective country specific submissions with the exception of the activity on grey water for Jordan, which is a stand-alone activity. I. Designing Strategic Interventions for Simultaneously Reducing Women's Drudgery, Youth Unemployment, and Ecosystem Degradation in Ethiopia (LWP) This activity is part of the bigger project on Combating Land Degradation and Improving Productivity through Integrated Watershed Management, Monitoring, and Community Participation. The gender component of this activity focuses on assessing the social, economic, and environmental benefits of introducing a fuel saving stove called “Mirt Stove.” The stove was introduced in the area in an effort to reduce the amount of time women spend to collect firewood, reduce their exposure to smoke, and offer young landless women an income generating opportunity by producing and selling the stoves in their community. The stoves are also offered to those who cannot afford to buy it in exchange for NRM related community services (construction of soil conservation structures). In addition, the study will look at shifts in perception, if any, on depletion of ecosystem services particularly focusing on forests and the ecosystem services the community derives from them. Data required for the study will be collected using a combination of surveys, semi-structured interviews, and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). . II. Management of treated grey water for agricultural use in Jordan– A Gendered Perspective (RRR) Currently Jordan ranks as the world’s second water-poorest country in the world. The demand for fresh water, however, is ever increasing due to population growth, Climate Change, increasing number of refugees hosted by the country, as well as heightened demand by the growing economy and its different sectors. Agriculture takes the lion share of the water - using over 65% of surface and groundwater, and 98% of recycled wastewater. The demand for alternative safe water sources is thus very high. ICARDA in close collaboration with Jordan’s National Center for Agricultural Research and Extension (NCARE) developed and tested a community based grey water treatment system that is used and managed at the household level. Following several training sessions, members of the community are now generating and using grey water to irrigate olive, grape, and almond trees; as well as highly demanded fodder such as alfalfa. Women organized and registered as an association have also begun to produce and market olive soaps using the olives grown with grey water. It is anticipated that large scale adoption and use of this grey water treatment will have the potential to: • reduce current and future demand for fresh water by offering alternative source of water for agricultural use; • increase overall yield (fodder and stone fruit trees), and • increase household income as a result of reduced cost of water and increased agricultural produce. The aim of this research is to assess and identify opportunities as well as constraints to widespread use of this alternative source of water for home farms. Social acceptance of the technology is also considered key in promoting or hindering wider dissemination of the technology. Hence the study will assess the roles of men and women in generating, managing, and using grey water; as well as farmers’ (men and women)and potential consumers’ perception on grey water use. Findings of this study will inform future dissemination strategies. III. Quantification of nitrogen dynamics and flows and mitigation of its losses in agricultural systems in the Indus basin of Pakistan (LWP) This activity aims to investigate, quantify and address: (1) fertilizer management and it’s over, inappropriate and under use; (2) N losses due to agricultural activities; (3) N flows associated with run off, leaching and erosion; and (4) fertilizer markets and distribution in the Indus basin, while considering a balance between the various ecosystem services related to food production and environmental quality. Researchers working on this project will be trained and certified to mainstream gender in their research, and their strategies to disseminate their research findings. IV. A framework for analyzing the impacts of treated, partially treated or untreated wastewater use in agriculture in Egypt (RRR) Water from agricultural drainage forms the largest quantity of wastewater used in Egypt. A significant quantity of untreated domestic wastewater, effluent from industries and discharges from wastewater treatment facilities that are operating under-capacity are adding to the supply because they are discharged into the agricultural drains. This practice of using drain water mixed with sewage has the potential to severely harm human health and the environment. Within the gender-mainstreaming framework, the research will aim to understand the roles of men and women in generating and using wastewater; as well as assess the perceptions of men and women on the use of waste water for agricultural use. V. A fact checking approach towards strengthening evidence-based policy and technology implementation in the Nile Delta, Egypt (LWP) A ‘Fact Checking’ approach will be used to evaluate the raised-bed technology to determine its efficacy in terms of environmental, economic, and social benefits. The ‘facts’ as presented by researchers will be checked against pre-determined criteria by selected working groups composed of various stakeholders (farmers, NARS, Ministries, policy makers). Gender sensitivity of the technologies will be one among the many criteria and will be used to assess the efficacy of the technology from a gendered perspective. The findings will offer the often-missing evidence on the advantages and disadvantages of including/excluding women in research (design – testing- and dissemination strategies) and will aim to highlight the important role of women in the management and use of various ecosystem services. Results of this study will be used as a foundation to devise appropriate out-scaling strategies and promote its wider dissemination.