Gender in the Participatory Agricultural Development and Empowerment Project 2003-2008 : a Case Study of Iringa District Tanzania

Participatory Agricultural and Empowerment Project (PADEP) is a project introduced by government of Tanzania to improve small holders’ agricultural production. The project aimed to empower smallholder’s agricultural sector in order to reduce poverty, increase food production and income. This research analyses the processes of empowerment and participation of the vulnerable and the specific groups of poor women in Iringa District. The research discusses the cost sharing criteria of the project as exclusionary in which the vulnerable groups and the specific groups of poor women were excluded from participating in the project due to their vulnerability and poverty. Also, the Intersectionality of class, gender, age, and poverty are discussed in relation to the exclusion of these groups of people.