Abstract

Charles K. Ssekabembe and Thomas L. Odong

Nakati (Solanum aethiopicum) production is labour intensive. This paper reports on the division of labour in the production of this crop in central Uganda. There is significant division of labour between husbands and wives. Heavy duty land preparation is mostly done by husbands and hired male labour in order to do it fast when large acreages of Nakati are involved. Hired labour (35%) does most of the land preparation and weeding. Women do hand weeding better than men. Sowing is predominantly done by men (50%) who claim better experience than the females in broadcasting the crop. Pest control is mostly done by husbands and hired male labour (78%). Most women can not carry the knapsack sprayer and are often busy with household work. Fertilizer application is also mostly done by men (56%). Harvesting is mostly done by family labour (42%), and mostly by males who can carry the heavy Nakati bundles from the fields. Marketing is predominantly done by husbands (87%). Sometimes wives opt to have a separate plot of Nakati to cater for their unique needs. Generally, men do most of the work in Nakati production but training for Nakati improvement ought to target both men and women. Women should be organized into groups which can also be voluntarily joined by husbands, and these groups can be easily trained by extensions agents. It is preferable for women extensions agents to train the women farmers’ groups because women are likely to relate to fellow women in this regard. Since women are usually busy with household work training should coincide with the dry season when there is less work in the field. Farmer field schools could also benefit Nakati growers.