Abstract
Horticulture is one of the fastest growing subsectors of agriculture in Tanzania. Gender relations in vegetable-producing and vegetable-trading households need to be understood to make value chain development equitable. This study, carried out in northern and central Tanzania, is based on data from surveys, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. The perceptions of men and women traders and producers are investigated with regard to labour participation in traditional vegetable value chains and gains (income and expenditure) from it. Farmers were found to report more balanced intra-household labour arrangements paired with less-balanced income and expenditure shares, while traders indicated less-balanced labour contributions that went hand in hand with more-balanced shares of benefits. Farmers related limited household development not only to imbalances in benefits but also to a lack of trust and cooperation between spouses. The importance of gender-transformative approaches in agricultural value chains is emphasized herein.
Highlights
Linking farmers to markets and improving traders’ business skills have emerged as important objectives of agricultural and agri-business-oriented development programmes
Studies have shown that value chain development interacts with gender dynamics in households and communities along the chain, with potentially unexpected and undesired consequences if social inequalities are not identified and taken into account
Scholars have demanded that gender considerations should be an integral part of interventions and that the achievement of economic prosperity for both men and women within value chains should be taken as an indicator of equitable and sustainable development (FAO 2016; Mayoux and Mackie 2007; Rubin et al 2009; Kaaria and Ashby 2001)
Summary
Linking farmers to markets and improving traders’ business skills have emerged as important objectives of agricultural and agri-business-oriented development programmes. The present work is a gendered analysis of producers’ and traders’ participation in traditional vegetable value chains in Tanzania and the benefits accrued from participation. It provides insights into intra-household perceptions as well as differences between nodes. Such an understanding is much needed, since horticulture is the fastest-growing subsector of agriculture in Tanzania, with vegetables increasingly being produced as cash crops Development partners should support more equitable outcomes in this process through gender-transformative approaches that pay attention to inequalities at multiple levels
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