Southern Africa has suffered through one of the worst droughts in decades. Due to the growing uncertainty of rainfall in the region, many are turning to irrigation as a key strategy for securing future harvests. The problem, however, is that male and female farmers have deeply unequal rights to critical resources, including water.
Botswana's crippling water woes
While women grow the majority of food in this region, public programmes and policies are skewed towards providing water for male livelihood activities. This bias undermines female farmers' ability to adapt to climate change and weakens the food security of the region.
In the semi-arid, southern African country of Botswana, women rely heavily on irrigation to grow vegetables during the long dry season. These crops are produced for home consumption and to generate needed income.
While the government has provided much needed support for this activity in recent years, they have been disappointed with the results, even considering it an utter failure in some cases.
What these appraisals overlook is the critical role that water access plays in the success of a women's vegetable production operation, and the overall way in which women's farming activities are marginalised in the country.
In fact, differences in water access among female vegetable farmers in Botswana had a huge influence on whether or not commercial horticulture helps improve household food security.
