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The main source of livelihood is subsistence agriculture, but some men migrate to
the city in search of employment and business. Of the three districts, Dowa has the
highest percentages of households growing groundnuts followed by sorghum.
Intercropping cassava with maize is also common.
2.2 Study Design and Data Collection Methods
The first three stages of sampling involved selection of districts, extension planning
areas and villages. The districts and EPAs were purposively sampled based on their
vulnerability to climate change, marriage systems and implementation of the CSA
technologies. Finally, using systematic and proportional sampling, households for
interviews were selected from a list of villages that was obtained from each EPA in
order to have proportionate representation of subsamples across villages. The study
used mixed methods in both data collection and data analysis. The main data collection methods used were household survey, key informants interviews (KII) and
focus group discussions (FGDs). A qualitative approach was used to investigate the
major motives behind men and women’s adoption and disadoption of CSA technologies and to prioritise men and women’s CSA technology preferences. Gendered
constraints that affect women and men’s CSA adoption were also identified through
FGDs. The FGDs were conducted with randomly selected groups of smallholder
farmers ranging between 8 and 15 members per group, drawn from the sampled
EPAs, in order to maintain consistence in the data flow. The discussions were conducted with separate groups of female and male farmers and two FGDs were conducted in each EPA. A total of eight FGDs were conducted, four for females only
and four for males only. FGDs were intended to generate qualitative data necessary
to substantiate quantitative data collected through semi-structured questionnaires.
During the focus group discussion with female and male farmers, each group was
requested to construct the ladder of adaptive capacity based on their communities.
Members were also asked to draw the community vulnerability line (CVL) and
choose a step where most female-headed households and male-headed households
belong. This activity helped to establish the level of adaptive capacity among female
and male farmers and factors that contributed to the movement up and down the
ladder of adaptive capacity.
The household survey was conducted with 229 randomly sampled respondents
from male- and female-headed households. The sample size was different in each
district, but the total number per each district exceeded 30, which is a recommended
minimum sample size. There were 60 respondents in Phalombe, 107 in Nkhotakota
and 62 in Dowa. The female respondents were sampled from both female- and
male-headed households, and in total, 60% of the respondents were females. The
respondents included both male and female farmers from male-headed households
and female farmers from female-headed households to allow comparison of factors
for each group. A ladder of adaptive capacity with five steps was presented in the
questionnaire where step 5 represented households with high capacity to adapt to
Gender Differentiation in the Adoption of Climate Smart Agriculture Technologies…
The main source of livelihood is subsistence agriculture, but some men migrate to
the city in search of employment and business. Of the three districts, Dowa has the
highest percentages of households growing groundnuts followed by sorghum.
Intercropping cassava with maize is also common.
2.2 Study Design and Data Collection Methods
The first three stages of sampling involved selection of districts, extension planning
areas and villages. The districts and EPAs were purposively sampled based on their
vulnerability to climate change, marriage systems and implementation of the CSA
technologies. Finally, using systematic and proportional sampling, households for
interviews were selected from a list of villages that was obtained from each EPA in
order to have proportionate representation of subsamples across villages. The study
used mixed methods in both data collection and data analysis. The main data collection methods used were household survey, key informants interviews (KII) and
focus group discussions (FGDs). A qualitative approach was used to investigate the
major motives behind men and women’s adoption and disadoption of CSA technologies and to prioritise men and women’s CSA technology preferences. Gendered
constraints that affect women and men’s CSA adoption were also identified through
FGDs. The FGDs were conducted with randomly selected groups of smallholder
farmers ranging between 8 and 15 members per group, drawn from the sampled
EPAs, in order to maintain consistence in the data flow. The discussions were conducted with separate groups of female and male farmers and two FGDs were conducted in each EPA. A total of eight FGDs were conducted, four for females only
and four for males only. FGDs were intended to generate qualitative data necessary
to substantiate quantitative data collected through semi-structured questionnaires.
During the focus group discussion with female and male farmers, each group was
requested to construct the ladder of adaptive capacity based on their communities.
Members were also asked to draw the community vulnerability line (CVL) and
choose a step where most female-headed households and male-headed households
belong. This activity helped to establish the level of adaptive capacity among female
and male farmers and factors that contributed to the movement up and down the
ladder of adaptive capacity.
The household survey was conducted with 229 randomly sampled respondents
from male- and female-headed households. The sample size was different in each
district, but the total number per each district exceeded 30, which is a recommended
minimum sample size. There were 60 respondents in Phalombe, 107 in Nkhotakota
and 62 in Dowa. The female respondents were sampled from both female- and
male-headed households, and in total, 60% of the respondents were females. The
respondents included both male and female farmers from male-headed households
and female farmers from female-headed households to allow comparison of factors
for each group. A ladder of adaptive capacity with five steps was presented in the
questionnaire where step 5 represented households with high capacity to adapt to
Gender Differentiation in the Adoption of Climate Smart Agriculture Technologies…