Globalization, Gender, and Poverty in the Senegal River Valley

In an impressive attempt to guarantee food security, well over two billion dollars have been invested in the modernization of the agrarian economy in the Senegal River Valley. But, even though two huge dams and thousands of village-based irrigation schemes have been constructed since the late 1970s, food security is still as illusive as ever. This study attempts to explain why. In doing so it focuses on the impact of donor-dominated macro-structural change on gender and class relations. This analytical perspective has two benefits: First, it reveals the risks posed by foreign domination of development programs for different segments of the rural population. Second, it points to a critical element in a new approach to improving farm productivity and food security – improving women's access to land and technology.