The Kore Lavi program, a food security initiative in Haiti, conducted a gender analysis to understand the relationship between gender behaviors and food security. The analysis was conducted in four departments and involved the cooperation of stakeholders, including the field team, research team, participants, and key informants. The Ministry of Gender, and Social Protection (MGCSP) collaborated with the research team in all departments.
The analysis revealed that the gender-based distinction significantly influences the production process and strategies used by households to ensure food availability and use. Women are primarily responsible for reproductive work, while men are leaders in productive work, including agricultural production. Women also take care of the home and daily business activities, investing their savings back into the household. In contrast, men are responsible for providing shelter and contributing to school fees.
The analysis also found that women have limited control over their bodies, with men having the final say in decisions such as property acquisition or sale. Women are also responsible for childcare, and their workload and nutrition do not change during pregnancy. There is a basic level of knowledge on the nutrition of children, pregnant, and lactating women, but the economic situation of the household often prevents its implementation.
In terms of participation in public decision-making, community-based organizations are the most widely used mechanism, involving both men and women. However, women are less involved in leadership positions than men, due to perceptions based on gender and women’s workload.
The analysis made several recommendations to address these issues. At the individual level, women traders should be trained to manage their income-generating activities, and a more equitable access to credit for women and men in rural areas should be facilitated. A better understanding of reproductive health and reproductive control should be developed, and a nutrition education program should be implemented based on the needs of children, pregnant, and lactating women.
At the relational level, reflections on the flexibility of the current gender division of labor should be facilitated, and household female heads and vulnerable women living in couples should be taken into account in food security activities. The impact of the program on the relationship in the couple and the leadership of women at both community and couple levels should be followed up.
At the structural level, people in the community should be mobilized and mentored for a better understanding of gender and its impact on food insecurity. Trainers, volunteers, and gender equality officers should be trained to deliver sensitization sessions on equality of rights. Members of the target groups should be trained on gender equality, and specific awareness sessions should be organized during elections to motivate the participation of women. Strong partnerships with local organizations promoting equality between men and women should be established, and partnerships with the Ministry of Women’s Status, and Women’s Rights (MCFDF) should be strengthened.