Voss Rachel C, Cairns Jill E, Olsen Michael, Muteti Francisca Ndinda, Magambo Kanyenji George, Hamadziripi Esnath, Ligeyo Dickson, Mashingaidze Kingstone, Collinson Sarah, Wanderi Susan, Woyengo Vincent
Sustainable Agri-food Systems Program, International Maize & Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Nairobi, Kenya.
Global Maize Program, International Maize & Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Harare, Zimbabwe.
Front Sociol. 2023 Sep 19;8:1254595. doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2023.1254595. eCollection 2023.
The integration of gender concerns in crop breeding programs aims to improve the suitability and appeal of new varieties to both women and men, in response to concerns about unequal adoption of improved seed. However, few conventional breeding programs have sought to center social inclusion concerns. This community case study documents 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. These efforts included deliberate exploration of potential gendered impacts of project technologies and innovations in the project's approach to variety evaluation, culminating in the use of decentralized on-farm trials using the tricot approach. Through this case study, we illustrate the power of active and respectful collaborations between breeders and social scientists, spurred by donor mandates to address gender and social inclusion. Gender integration in this case was further facilitated by open-minded project leaders and allocation of funding for gender research. 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.
将性别问题纳入作物育种计划旨在提高新品种对男性和女性的适用性和吸引力，以回应人们对改良种子采用情况不平等的担忧。然而，很少有传统育种计划将社会包容问题作为核心。本社区案例研究记录了利用基于项目文件和作者经验的创新历史分析，将性别因素纳入以玉米为重点的非洲种子生产技术（SPTA）项目的努力。这些努力包括对项目技术的潜在性别影响进行深入探讨，以及在项目品种评估方法中进行创新，最终采用了基于三角测量法的分散式田间试验。通过本案例研究，我们展示了在捐助方要求解决性别和社会包容问题的推动下，育种者与社会科学家之间积极且相互尊重的合作所产生的力量。思想开放的项目负责人以及为性别研究分配资金进一步推动了该案例中的性别整合。事实证明，SPTA是围绕性别与玉米育种进行试验和跨学科合作的沃土，并为寻求纳入性别考量的大型育种项目提供了概念验证。
