Does gender play a role in the adoption of sustainable intensification? Plot-level evidence from Senegal

Sustainable Development Goal 5 aims to achieve gender equality. In rural communities across sub-Saharan Africa—where agriculture remains the primary livelihood—addressing gender disparities in access to and adoption of improved agricultural technologies is critical for inclusive development. This paper contributes to the growing literature on gender gaps in sustainable intensification by examining disparities in the adoption of conservation agriculture practices within extended rural households, the predominant social and economic unit in Senegal. We conduct a plot-level analysis to investigate how the gender of plot managers influences the adoption of three key conservation practices: fallowing, crop residue mulching, and crop rotation. These practices are foundational to sustainable intensification, offering long-term benefits for soil health, agricultural productivity, and climate resilience. However, structural and social barriers—such as limited labor availability, unequal access to extension services, and entrenched gender norms—may impede women’s adoption of such practices. To rigorously identify gender-based differences and address potential selection bias stemming from gender role perceptions, we apply two complementary identification strategies: a selection-on-observables design and entropy balancing. These methods are implemented using detailed plot-level data from the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 waves of the Senegalese Annual Agricultural Survey. Our findings reveal that plots managed by women are significantly less likely to adopt sustainable practices than comparable plots managed by men, with the most pronounced disparities in crop rotation and residue mulching. These results highlight the importance of gender-responsive agricultural policies, particularly in designing extension services and information systems that effectively reach and empower women farmers.