Understanding economic, social, and gender-equity implications of agro-ecological practices in agro-pastoral systems of arid and semi-arid Maghreb

In North Africa, livestock is the mainstay of production systems, which are often characterized as an integration of olive-cereals and livestock keeping. Livestock heavily shapes the cultural, social and economic pillars of these systems, located in all biogeographic areas spanning from the humid mountainous zones in the North to the oasis systems in the South, with multiple functionalities and services (meat and milk for food consumption and income generation, wool and skins, manure for soil preservation, recycling plant nutrients, wealth creation for social and economic investment, saving, etc.). Strengthening the interactions between the crop and livestock components is important for overcoming low productivity, drought, and other shocks (such as the current pandemic and political instability). Agro-ecological approaches that have been implemented in the region have so far been assessed from a biophysical viewpoint (e.g., percent of reduction in carbon, impact on yield, water cycle, etc.). However, the labor implications and considerations for gender equity from related benefits remain missing. These considerations are important as a balance should be achieved among ecological, economic and social benefits. Due to women’s heavy workloads, the introduction of any new practice should be assessed with considerations for at least not increasing their drudgery.

This extended case study will take place in Central and Southern Tunisia, in three governorates (Kairouan, Medenine, Kebili), with similar challenges related to: - Missed opportunities for soil fertility management: Biomass is produced from animal breeding and from agricultural activities but is not well reincorporated in the ecosystem, leading to continuous excessive use of chemical fertilizers and/or unsatisfying soil characteristics limiting the performances of both the agricultural and animal breeding practices; - Natural resource degradation in pastoral lands: Pastoralism has expanded in some delineated areas due to agricultural land expansion or desertification, leading to a growing pressure on pastoral land and loss of biodiversity, income and safety nets in these zones that are exposed to frequent droughts. These three governorates allow to analyze these challenges along a gradient of agro-climatic contexts from the semi-arid to arid zones, where pastoralism occupies different socio-economic and agronomic functions. The areas nonetheless vary with regards to community based institutional arrangements, market and gender norms dynamics. While women join community-based institutions in the center they are rarely involved in the south. The comparative approach allows to highlight the key variations and make their significance more evident in shaping more equitable, economically viable and environmentally sound impacts.

The labor implications and considerations for gender equity from benefits of agro-ecological approaches implemented in Tunisia will be studied through the case study, taking place in Central and Southern Tunisia, that will assess the resources needed for the sustained implementation of agro-ecological practices along various dimensions (labor taking into account gender dimension, capital, knowledge, collective action, etc.) and in terms of impacts. These considerations are important as a balance should be achieved among ecological, economic and social benefits.