International Women’s Day 2026 Theme: Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls

1. Executive summary

Women are central to Zambia’s agricultural and food systems. Across rural communities they produce food, manage seed systems, safeguard biodiversity and sustain household nutrition. Yet despite these contributions, structural gender inequalities continue to limit their access to land, finance, extension services and decision-making spaces. These barriers weaken both household food security and the broader transition toward agroecological farming systems.

Women constitute approximately 52% of Zambia’s population, and a large proportion of rural women depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. However, their ability to benefit from agricultural investments remains constrained by unequal land rights, limited access to productive resources and persistent social norms that restrict women’s participation in leadership and governance structures.

As Zambia and its partners promote agroecology as a pathway to climate resilience and sustainable agriculture, there is an urgent need to ensure that these transitions are gender-responsive and rights-based. This policy brief calls for concrete action to address structural inequalities and ensure that agroecological transformation benefits all women and girls.

2. The problem: Gender inequality in Zambia’s agriculture

Despite their critical role in food production and natural resource management, women continue to face systemic challenges across Zambia’s agricultural sector.

Participation and work

Women contribute significantly to farming, food processing and household nutrition. However, their labour is often undervalued and under-recognized. Many women simultaneously manage agricultural work alongside unpaid care responsibilities such as childcare, food preparation and water collection. This “double burden” limits the time and resources women can invest in innovation, training and leadership opportunities.

While women are actively involved in agricultural production, they are often concentrated in lower-value segments of value chains and have less control over income generated from agricultural activities.

Land rights and tenure

Secure land tenure remains one of the most critical challenges affecting women farmers. Although Zambia’s legal frameworks promote gender equality in land rights, the reality on the ground is more complex. Customary land tenure systems which govern much of the country’s land are strongly influenced by cultural norms that tend to prioritise men’s land ownership.

As a result, many women access land primarily through male relatives such as husbands or fathers. This means their land rights can be insecure, particularly in cases of divorce, widowhood or family disputes. Without secure land tenure, women may be reluctant to invest in long-term sustainable practices such as agroforestry or soil restoration.

Strengthening women’s land rights is therefore essential not only for gender equality but also for sustainable agricultural transformation.

Access to inputs and services

Women farmers often face barriers when accessing agricultural inputs, financial services, climate information and extension support. These barriers can include limited collateral for loans, mobility constraints and extension systems that are not designed to reach women effectively.

Evidence from development programmes in Zambia shows that when women have access to savings groups, credit and farmer training, they are more likely to adopt sustainable farming practices and invest in agroecological innovations. Addressing these barriers is therefore critical for enabling women to participate fully in climate-resilient agriculture

Knowledge and technology gaps 

There is a significant gender gap in agricultural advisory services, with studies indicating that 43% of women in agriculture have access to only 5% of extension services, hindering knowledge of agroecology methods.

Climate change vulnerability 

Rural women who make up a large portion of the agricultural workforce are disproportionately affected by climate chocks like droughts and floods, yet they hold less than 20% of decision-making positions in local disaster management committees.

Weak policy implementation 

While national policies exist to support gender mainstreaming, practical implementation remains weak, preventing the full integration of women into sustainable agriculture initiatives.

3. Why this matters

Addressing gender inequality in agriculture is not only a matter of fairness, it is also essential for achieving sustainable development outcomes. It boosts food security, reduces poverty and enhances economic growth.

Research consistently shows that closing gender gaps in access to land, inputs and services can significantly improve agricultural productivity. Global estimates suggest that equal access to productive resources could increase farm yields by 20–30%, contributing to improved food security and reduced hunger.

In Zambia’s climate-vulnerable landscapes, women also play an important role in natural resource management. They are often responsible for managing household energy, water and food systems, making them key actors in climate adaptation and environmental stewardship.

Empowering rural women economically and politically can therefore strengthen community resilience, promote biodiversity conservation and support the long-term sustainability of agroecological systems

4. Policy priorities: From commitment to action

To align agroecology with the International Women’s Day theme “Rights. Justice. Action.”, stakeholders across Zambia’s agricultural sector must move beyond commitments and focus on practical implementation.

Strengthening women’s land rights and tenure security

Efforts should focus on translating Zambia’s gender-inclusive land policies into practice. This includes accelerating the implementation of provisions within the 2021 National Land Policy that promote women’s land ownership.

Collaboration with customary authorities is particularly important. Traditional leaders play a critical role in land allocation and can support initiatives that ensure women have secure and documented land rights.

Address structural barriers

Agricultural extension services should adopt gender-transformative approaches that recognise women’s time constraints, information needs and socio-economic realities. This may include training female extension officers, scheduling trainings at times accessible to women and integrating gender considerations into advisory services.

Investments in labour-saving technologies and childcare support can also reduce women’s unpaid care burdens and allow them to participate more actively in agricultural activities and community leadership.

Enable economic agency and leadership

Supporting women’s economic empowerment requires expanding access to finance, savings mechanisms and market opportunities. Women-focused producer groups and cooperatives can provide platforms for collective action, market access and knowledge sharing.

At the same time, women’s leadership in producer organisations, community institutions and agroecological networks should be actively promoted.

5. Call to action

Achieving gender-responsive agroecological transitions requires collaboration across multiple stakeholders. Government institutions, research organisations, civil society groups, traditional leaders, donors and private sector actors must work together to:

• Translate Zambia’s gender-inclusive policies into practical actions on the ground
• Invest in rural women’s leadership, skills and economic opportunities
• Strengthen accountability mechanisms that ensure women benefit from agricultural programmes

Only through collective action can Zambia ensure that agroecology becomes both environmentally sustainable and socially just.

6. Conclusion

Zambia’s transition toward sustainable agriculture and agroecology cannot succeed if gender inequalities remain unaddressed. Rural women are already at the centre of food production and natural resource management, yet their contributions often remain undervalued and unsupported.

As Zambia commemorates International Women’s Day 2026, there is an opportunity to move beyond rhetoric and focus on practical action. Strengthening women’s land rights, improving access to resources and supporting women’s leadership will not only advance gender equality but also contribute to resilient food systems and sustainable landscapes.

Ensuring Rights. Justice. and Action for ALL women and girls is therefore essential for the future of Zambia’s agriculture and agroecology.

By Ray Zambwe – Gender Specialist, CIFOR-ICRAF / RAENS Programme.

Ray Zambwe is a gender specialist at CIFOR-ICRAF, advancing gender equality in agricultural research, agroforestry, and climate-resilient development. Skilled in gender analysis, policy advisory, capacity building, and inclusive programme design, Ray has a passion for strengthening women’s leadership, advancing equitable food systems, and ensuring sustainable development. 

Cover photo: Forest foods in Zambia are diverse and nutrient rich. At a food fair in Luwingu, Zambia, in April 2017, women display items they regularly forage and cultivate. Photo by Joe Nkadaani / CIFOR.

• Strengthen existing initiatives;
• Showcase the potential and scalability of agroecology;
• Facilitate shifts in agricultural training and research towards agroecological and regenerative ways of producing food, fibre and fodder; and
• Inform policy, thereby leading to an enabling landscape for agroecology uptake, research and training.

Over the course of the 4-day meeting, project partners​1 reflected on progress made during the first year of implementation and laid out their plans for year two across the four main workstreams of RAENS:

1) Establishing a research network to improve coordination of agroecology research in the region, in collaboration with farmer organisations, extension workers, market actors, civil society groups and other grassroots practitioners.
2) Developing a learning network, to develop the next generation of agroecology scholars and practitioners in the region. This will include development of agroecological curricular materials for various levels of teaching, as well as supervision of students;
3) Knowledge management and dissemination, to increase the availability and awareness of agroecological knowledge materials, methodologies and tools; and
4) Evidence-based policy analysis and advice, to contribute to an improved policy environment for gender-sensitive agroecological transitions at local, national and regional levels.

RAENS partners from the five participating countries—Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe—and beyond shared their progress with regard to establishing national-level agroecology networks, selecting pilot sites for farmer-led agroecology research, and developing communities of practice on key agroecology themes. They also highlighted progress on scoping studies related to agroecology curricula and policy.

An exciting development is the establishment of an agroecology knowledge hub, hosted by the Transformative Partnership Platform for Agroecology (AE TPP), which will become a one-stop shop for agroecology resources for Southern Africa. RAENS partners also took time to discuss strategic issues related to growing the RAENS network and defining their shared position on agroecology.

No meeting on agroecology should take place entirely in a meeting room—this one took a break to visit the Kasisi Agricultural Training Centre (KATC), an agroecology training centre and organic farm outside of Lusaka that is a regional leader in agroecology education. KATC is also a member of the Seed and Knowledge Initiative (SKI). The visit was a highlight of the meeting, and a chance for RAENS partners to engage with KATC personnel on agroecological practices, training methods, farmer-led research and marketing agroecological produce.

RAENS hosted its first public event as a network on 5 February 2026, on “Bringing together research, teaching and practice to advance agroecology”. Participants included RAENS partners, SKI partners as well as other agroecology stakeholders from academia, civil society, government and the private sector in Zambia. During their remarks and the discussion that followed, panellists Frank Tchuwa of Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), Charles Nkhoma of Community Technology Development Trust (CTDT), Sussana Phiri of Young Professionals for Agricultural Development (YPARD) and Father Claus Recktenwald of KATC shared their experiences with farmer-led research and breeding, agroecology curriculum development and training, and the participation of youth in agroecology.

By the end of the week, RAENS partners had more clarity on the way forward to expand the regional network, begin pilot site research and launch the regional communities of practice. They also strengthened their relationships within RAENS, and with others outside of the network. Partners left with a renewed commitment to ensuring that agroecology research, teaching and advocacy improve the lives of small-scale farmers and their communities. 

By Brittany Kesselman

Brittany Kesselman is a researcher with the Bioeconomy Chair at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, where she coordinates the Research for Agroecology Network Southern Africa (RAENS). The project involves 8 implementing partners in 5 Southern African countries (Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and Europe. It builds national- as well as regional-level agroecology knowledge networks and focuses on research, curriculum, knowledge dissemination and advocacy in support of agroecological transitions in the region. Her current research focuses on the intersections of agroecology and indigenous food and farming knowledge and practices. Previous work has focused on the impact of colonialism on indigenous foodways in South Africa, challenges of urban food injustice, migration and dietary change, community food institutions, urban agriculture and food sovereignty.

Agroecological transitions provide a systemic and integrated response to the interconnected global crises of climate change, land and water degradation, biodiversity decline, and broken food systems. Importantly, agroecological transitions extend beyond farming to encompass the entire food system, from production to consumption to waste management.  

Building research capacity through Regional Multi-actor Research Networks

Ahead of the Africa Regional Centres of Excellence (ArcX) Forum, the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) convened researchers from the Research for Agroecology Network Southern Africa (RAENS) and other regional networks (known as Regional Multi-actor Research Networks (RMRNs)) to strengthen their capacity to design, implement, and evaluate agroecological research and innovation. The training combined classroom-style and field learning, exposing participants to agroecological principles, innovations, and assessment tools while fostering collaboration across research networks.

Participants were urged to embrace systems thinking, interdisciplinarity, and participatory research, that is, doing science with people, not on them. Such approaches are crucial because agroecology transcends disciplinary and sectoral boundaries, balancing ecological, social, and economic values.

Images: Researchers engaging in active discussions, learning and dialogue during pre-ArcX forum training. Photo credit: RMRN

Persistent questions of scale

Agroecology promises sustainability, resilience, and inclusiveness, values long neglected in productivity-focused conventional agriculture. Yet scaling remains a concern. Industrial agriculture is perceived as more “scalable,” reinforced by entrenched policies and incentives.

Discussions also unpacked the blurred lines between agroecology and related approaches such as organic, regenerative, climate-smart, and conservation agriculture. While overlaps exist, agroecology is much broader than these approaches, encompassing ecological, socio-cultural, technological, and governance dimensions.

Fundamental questions linger about how agroecology can overcome the policy “lock-ins” that favour industrial-scale farming. Participants highlighted the need to strengthen the research–farmer–policymaker interface and proposed strategic and science-grounded advocacy. Another debate centred on scaling strategies. Scaling out agroecology is often labour- and knowledge-intensive. Some argued for scaling “deep” instead, embedding agroecological principles more firmly in local contexts.

Moving forward: Where to from here?

Some participants called for minimum standards to certify agroecology, as in organic agriculture. Others resisted, noting agroecology’s inherently non-prescriptive nature. Ultimately, the call was to ground agroecology in research, technology, and measurable performance, thereby avoiding its reduction to ideology rather than science.

Images: (L) Researchers taking part in a field experience of agroecology in practice at the Drylands Natural Resources Centre, Kenya. (R) The RAENS researchers who participated in the training. Photo credit: RMRN

Building strong communities of practice (CoPs) emerged as a key priority. These networks, connecting researchers, practitioners, farmers, policymakers, and investors, will be vital in linking evidence of agroecology’s benefits with broader adoption. They can also share lessons across regions.

Agroecology provides a transformative framework for feeding the world without consuming the earth. The task now is to continue to generate and disseminate evidence, build partnerships, and create the policy and investment conditions that allow it to thrive at scale.

Amos Amanubo, PhD candidate, University of Cape Town, Bio-economy Research Chair

The regional RAENS network is linked to similar networks in East Africa – Regional Multi-actor Research Network on Agroecology in East Africa (RMRN-EA) and West Africa – Agroecology Network to Promote the Sustainability of Food Systems in West and Central Africa (RADiUS, the French acronym). These three networks receive continental coordination and support from FARA and RUFORUM.

The overarching goal of RAENS is to:

Establish a robust, innovative, and sustainable multi-actor transdisciplinary agroecology research and knowledge network in Southern Africa to:

o Strengthen existing initiatives;

o Showcase the potential and scalability of agroecology;

o Facilitate shifts in agricultural training and research towards agroecological and regenerative ways of producing food, fibre and fodder; and

o Inform policy, thereby leading to an enabling landscape for agroecology uptake, research and training.

RAENS has four components, namely:

1) Establishing a research network to improve coordination of agroecology research in the region, in collaboration with farmer organisations, extension workers, market actors, civil society groups and other grassroots practitioners.

2) Developing a learning network, to develop the next generation of agroecology scholars and practitioners in the region. This will include development of agroecological curricular materials for various levels of teaching, as well as supervision of students;

3) Knowledge management and dissemination, to increase the availability and awareness of agroecological knowledge materials, methodologies and tools; and

4) Evidence-based policy analysis and advice, to contribute to an improved policy environment for gender-sensitive agroecological transitions at local, national and regional levels.

The group agreed on the following ground rules to guide their continued engagement:

Openness

Good participation

Listening

“De-roling” (taking off the hats that are not relevant)

Outside-the-box thinking

Respecting each other’s views

Being present

Observing time management

Through a series of plenary presentations followed by discussions, the participants came to grips with technical issues such as reporting, procurement, governance and implementation arrangements, external communications guidelines, and the draft contract.

An external expert provided a session on gender and agroecology, and the participants worked together in small groups to brainstorm and deepen thinking around the four project components. The following topics were discussed: pilot sites for agroecology research and innovation, communities of practice, students and supervision, knowledge management, and policy and advocacy. In terms of pilot sites, members of the research network will undertake farmer-led agroecological research at pilot sites in the five member countries – South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Tanzania. Additionally, regional communities of practice will be established on key agroecology topics.

A session on monitoring and evaluation was followed by input from FARA and RUFORUM regarding their support for Regional Centres of Excellence on Agroecology (the other name for the 3 RMRNs). The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre weighed in on their scientific support to the RMRN Project. On the last day of the meeting, the group of project implementers and project coordinators sat in on the first, virtual meeting of the project’s Advisory Board. Participants learned that the Advisory Board would meet annually and although Board members would receive project reports for their information and interest, they do not have an executive or fiduciary function. The meeting was fast-paced, and a lot of ground was covered, but there was time for relaxation too as the bright lights of the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront beckoned across the bay. A number of the participants caught a shuttle to the Waterfront to go shopping and browse through the food stalls at the Oranjezicht City Farm Market.

Overall, the meeting was productive and stimulating, made for stronger connections across the region and institutions, and laid the foundations for a thriving collaboration.

Photo: Bridget Kakuwa