ABSTRACT

Purpose: This study explores female-headed households in Grand Bassa, Lofa and Nimba counties to discern Liberia's smallholding, subsistence agriculture. Amid environmental and communal dynamics, addressing factors causing challenges of farming is imperative.

Methodology: Using explanatory sequential methods this study collects, explains, and organizes farming and household situations qualitatively through field notes, observations, and extensive communications with 44 female farmers. Subsequently and quantitatively, Chi-Square Automatic Interaction Detection (CHAID) verifies aforementioned information, accompanied by 112 observations.

Findings: Stories encapsulate female farmers in Grand Bassa, Lofa, and Nimba counties. They provide evidence of marginalized, progressive, and emerging farming in order. Children (n > 3) and inadequate support of Kuu (informal labor) and of community make food stability, availability and access insecure. Insufficient crop revenue further exacerbates the issues. Moderate- and mild food-insecure households need not worry about the problems above. However, their earnings notwithstanding, new challenges appear in credit practices and land conflict.

Practical Implications: Extension agents should provide timely services for each community, with special attention to women-headed households. Findings imply ex-post evaluations to ex-ante extension services should be cyclical.

Theoretical Implications: A gender-inclusive, gender-sensitive framework is vital to enhance food security and community resilience, transform subsistence agriculture into agribusiness and achieve fairness, gender equity and social justice for agrarian Liberians – especially women and children.

Originality/Value: This study captures distinctive phases of farming and family life – yielding qualitative and subsequent quantitative validation of predictors of food insecurity in rural, women-headed farming households/operations. It should guide us to tailor ex-ante extension services.

摘要

目的：本研究探讨了大巴萨，洛法和宁巴县的女户主家庭，以了解利比里亚的小农，自给农业。在环境和社区动态中，必须解决造成农业挑战的因素。

方法：本研究采用解释性顺序方法，通过田间记录，观察和与44位女农民的广泛交流，定性地收集，解释和组织了农业和家庭状况。随后定量地，卡方自动互动检测（CHAID）验证上述信息，并进行112观察。

调查结果：故事囊括了大巴萨，洛法和宁巴州的女性农民。它们提供了边缘化，进步和新兴农业有序的证据。儿童（n  > 3）以及对Kuu（非正规劳动力）和社区的支持不足，导致粮食稳定，供应和获取不安全。作物收入不足进一步加剧了这些问题。中度和轻度粮食不安全的家庭不必担心上述问题。然而，尽管他们的收入很高，但在信贷实践和土地冲突中仍出现了新的挑战。

实际影响：推广人员应为每个社区提供及时的服务，并特别关注以妇女为户主的家庭。调查结果暗示对事前扩展服务进行事后评估应该是周期性的。

理论意义：包容性别的，对性别问题敏感的框架对于增强粮食安全和社区抵御力，将自给自足的农业转变为农业综合企业以及为农业利比里亚人（尤其是妇女和儿童）实现公平，性别平等和社会正义至关重要。

原创性/价值：这项研究涵盖了农业和家庭生活的不同阶段-对农村妇女领导的农业家庭/企业中粮食不安全的预测指标进行定性和随后的定量验证。它应该指导我们定制事前扩展服务。