An excerpt:

In Mali, like in many other countries in Africa, both men and women participate in agricultural activities, particularly in rice-based farming. Because rice farming requires access to land, availability of and access to agricultural equipment and inputs, and financial resources, socio-economic and cultural barriers limit women’s effective participation in rice-based farming. Those barriers make agriculture a men-dominated sector, thus making it difficult to value women’s contribution in agriculture. Women have limited access to climate information services and climate-smart agriculture technologies which is making them more vulnerable to climate change.

As a response to these challenges, AfricaRice is disseminating gender sensitive technologies in Mali through the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project. Their large-scale adoption could help female farmers to be fully engaged in rice production.  Women have benefited from trainings on the development of Smart Valleys and were also given seeds of drought and flood tolerant rice varieties. They are informed and engaged in other proven gender responsive technologies and innovations being promoted in Mali such as solar pumps for boosting off-season vegetable growing, improved rice parboiling technology for processing quality and nutritious rice for their household’s consumption and selling, integrated rice-fish for diversifying income and improving food and nutrition security, RiceAdvice digital application for location of specific sustainable rice cultivation practices and climate information services for climate informed agricultural decisions. 

AICCRA uses business models such as the Center for Mechanized Agriculture, Pay-As-You-Go and Saving Clubs to enhance women's access to finances, and accelerate the adoption of climate smart agriculture and climate information services. From 2021 to 2023, more than 50,000 women farmers have seen their yield, income and food consumption status increased.