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ANNUAL REPORT
DLSU-SDRC MARKET AND GENDER STUDIES
(October 2007-September 2008)
I.
Executive Summary
In Year 3, for development purposes it became practical to integrate the market and
gender components although separate reporting (book type) on market and gender
findings was still being undertaken. This was due to the fact that marketing was a
gendered, i.e., women’s, activity in Songco, the research site. Presentation and
discussion of the integrated market and gender findings in several public fora was
also done. The public discussions aided further data analysis and provided more
ideas for writing the conclusion and recommendation of two books. Contact with
women leaders of the only women’s association in the village called “Nagkahiusang
Pundok sa Kababayen-an sa Songco (United Women’s Group of Songco) MultiPurpose Cooperative” or NPKS-MPC was established as the project’s entry point
for data validation and participatory development planning, as well as for local
assistance in the new gender cross-cutting research thrust of SANREM.
This gender cross-cutting research focusing on women’s market networks had
energized the gender thrust during the year. The guidance and help of the NPKSMPC President was employed in identifying and facilitating contact with the study
subjects who are NPKS members, as well as in strategizing how best to approach
the network study. Discussions with groups of women farmers/marketers and
market middlemen especially those owning market warehouse facilities (“bodegas”)
were conducted. These discussions were also avenues for validating market and
gender data obtained in the initial two years. Additional funds for the cross-cutting
research that later became available were used to begin data gathering on the
women farmers’ market networks in the last quarter of the year.
The additional gender research thrust which involved all three countries in LTRP-5
necessitated the SDRC project director to spend more time doing active research
coordination work. Her travel to the Vietnam and Indonesia research sites
punctuated this work.
II.
Research Strategy and Developmental Objectives
The goal of the market and gender components was to generate data that would be
used by or integrated into the other component studies of TMPEGS to attain the
overall LTRP-5 Project goal of developing the lives of small-scale women and men
farmers in upland watersheds through improved vegetable and agroforestry (VAF)
production technologies. Thus market and gender data for the Philippines were
obtained through quantitative and qualitative methods, namely surveys, literature
review, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and participatory
mapping. Pertinent data have thus far been used for identifying the most preferred
and marketable VAF crops that the Technology researchers considered in their light
intensity experiment for tree-vegetable complementation, as well as for identifying
women farmer-participants for technology collaboration or trainings. This and other
project-introduced technologies like use of drip irrigation and no-till implement
which would spur crop production would expectedly impact on farmers’ marketing
practices and on women’s lives since most farmer-marketers are also women. These
impacts have yet to be determined by end of Year 3.
The TOP for the market and gender studies also hypothesized that favorable
impacts in the lives of small scale women and men farmers are attainable by
improving the vegetable and timber marketing outlets, the local farmer
organizations’ marketing clout, and the volume and quality of vegetableagroforestry products. Findings brought to light some constraints to the attainment
of these objectives such as: (1) only marketing of vegetables, not timber, can be
realistically pursued in the research site because timber is not grown by farmers for
commercial use, (2) farmers regard vegetable marketing to be an individual
household, rather than a collective, pursuit hence existing organizations are weak
and so development plans should incorporate community organizing intervention,
and (3) there exist entrenched marketing practices, particularly the vegetable
farmers’ reliance on the bodega (market warehousing facility) who are local village
entrepreneurs providing valuable farming and marketing services to the community,
that must be considered in any development plan.
The findings also implied that development objectives for market and gender
components must be integrated with other TMPEGS component of the project. That
is because, for instance, technology innovations are expected to affect not only
vegetable productivity but also its marketing. Moreover, market and gender
development interventions need policy support to succeed in the long run.
III. Research Progress by Objective
Market Objective: Conduct a market value chain research at the local, regional,
and national levels that builds upon existing market strategies, and develop
interventions to overcome constraints and make use of opportunities.
Critical Research Accomplishments:
 Near completion of the book on market findings, except for unfinished
sections on literature review and conclusions and recommendations.
 Validation of major market findings with women farmers and market agents.
 Presentation of market findings integrated with gender findings in public
fora.
System-level: Community/watershed
Development Impact:
 Identification of the market value chain for vegetables and particular tree
crops, especially the critical nodes that can affect the balance in the chain.


Determination of marketing opportunities and constraints for planning
possible market interventions.
Heightened awareness of these opportunities and constraints among the
study’s women and men participants.
Challenges and Responses:
 Participatory planning for market intervention is best achieved in
coordination with other components of TMPEGS. Other important inputs
from these components, like volume of likely increase in vegetable
production with adoption of tree-vegetable complementation or drip
irrigation or knowledge about supportive local policies for VAF production
will be needed to work out a development intervention plan for the project.
 Coordination was not yet possible in Year 3 as data from the technology
experiments were still being obtained. With the availability of such data
towards the end of this year, discussions with other components are
underway to have more coordinated activities in Year 4.
 Completion of the book has been slowed down by several factors principally
the demands of the SDRC project director’s new administrative workload
(SDRC directorship), changing teaching loads, and the newly included
gender cross-cutting research thrust. Writing momentum will be maintained
by dedicating at least one unhampered writing day per week.
Gender Objective: Provide mechanisms to ensure women’s involvement in
decisions and practices concerning sustainable production and marketing to
improve their socioeconomic wellbeing within the VAF system.
Critical Research Accomplishments:
 Near completion of the book on gender findings, except for unfinished
sections on literature review and conclusions and recommendations.
 Validation of major gender findings with women farmers and market
agents.
 Presentation of gender findings integrated with market findings in public
fora.
 Development of gender cross-cutting research framework and tools for
cross-country comparative study among the Philippine, Indonesia, and
Vietnam gender study teams.
 Mapping of nodes and ties in the market networks of 10 women vegetable
farmers who are members of the one and only women’s cooperative in the
community.
System-level: Community/watershed
Development Impact:
 Identification of the gender roles of women and men in the reproductive,
productive (including marketing), and community involvement spheres.


Identification of women’s economic opportunities and challenges for
advancing self and family welfare.
Understanding of women’s social capital, particularly individual networks
and organizational linkages, for the purpose of planning and designing
intervention options.
Challenges and Responses:
 The greatest challenge is how to engage women farmers and marketers to
apply the research findings to develop appropriate interventions for them
to improve and sustain their production and marketing activities. Findings
from other project components are needed to accomplish this. Additional
information on women’s social capital especially market networks is
currently being collected; this will be factored in their decision making.
 In response to the EEP’s recommendation in Year 2, a plan to monitor and
document women farmer’s participation in technology training,
development, and dissemination was designed for Year 3 with the
hypothesis in view that such participation will bring about greater benefits
to women’s households and to the rest of the women sector in Songco.
However, the plan proved to be premature because results of the
technology field experiments were yet unavailable. Moreover, the planned
task was going to overlap with the work of the socioeconomic impact
assessment component of LTRP-5. But a more collaborative and
integrated thrust in Year 4 will be attempted with the SDRC’s proposal to
hold technology orientation with women farmers and marketers who will
participate in the participatory focused discussions for the gender crosscutting research. The pertinent TMPEGS partners have already agreed to
the collaboration.
 Production of the book on gender findings has likewise slowed down
because the researcher in charge was also bogged down by teaching and
administrative duties. Conscious efforts to allocate writing time to finalize
the draft will be made.
 Additional work demands resulting from the gender cross-cutting research
are being met by employing a part-time experienced SDRC researcher and
a local woman leader who helps out during fieldwork.
IV. Degree and Non-Degree Training Activities
There is none so far in the Philippine site.
As gender coordinator of the project, the SDRC project director undertook informal
orientation training with the country gender teams on the gender cross-cutting
research framework especially the participatory network mapping method during
her field visit to Vietnam and Indonesia from August 28-September 10, 2008. This
cannot be technically considered as a training workshop.
V.
Publications, Presentations, and Other SANREM CRSP Products
Three presentations on market and gender findings were made in Year 3 at: (a) the
3rd National Agroforestry Congress (November 2007), (b) the DLSU-SDRC
Dissemination Forum (March 2008), and (c) the 2008 SANREM CRSP Annual
Meeting (May 2008; see Attached Form 18).
VI.
Networking Activities (None in Year 3)
VII. Project Highlights
1. Continuing production of two books based on market and gender findings.
2. Presentation and discussion of selected market and gender findings in three
public fora.
3. Validation of selected market and gender findings with informal groups of
women farmers-marketers and market agents (bodega owners).
4. Completion of participatory network mapping exercises and in-depth
interviews with women farmers for the Philippines’ gender cross-cutting
research.
5. Coordination-cum-field visit with Vietnam and Indonesia gender researchers
for the gender cross-cutting research.