Workshop: Applying the Women’s Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) tool to support gender-responsive policy innovation across Africa

By Jordan Kyle, Catherine Ragasa, Susan Kaaria, Margaret Mangheni, Dorine Odongo, and Anne Omamo

July 12, 2024

Well-designed and well-implemented agrifood policies can play a significant role in closing gender gaps and setting countries on a pathway toward sustainable and equitable food systems. IFPRI's new Women's Empowerment in Agrifood Governance (WEAGov) assessment tool-developed with support from the CGIAR research initiative on Gender Equality-measures women's voice and agency in national-level policymaking in the agrifood sector (Figure 1). Identifying gaps in women's voice in the agrifood policy process and finding entry points for inclusive participation are crucial to efforts to addressing gender inequities in agrifood systems-and to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

IFPRI researchers employed WEAGov as they joined forces with the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD)'s Gender Responsive Agriculture Systems Policy (GRASP) Fellowship Program in a virtual workshop on June 21. More than 150 researchers and fellows from 12 African countries exchanged insights and explored avenues for collaboration that could catalyze gender transformative change in African agrifood policymaking.