Impact of Training Couples on Decision Making and Planning on Food and Income Security: A Case of Cowpeas Farmers in Guruve District, Zimbabwe

The study’s main aim was to evaluate the impact of gender household targeted training (added to technical skills acquired) on decision making and planning on food and income security. Determining the level of women participation in household decision making and planning on income level and assets accrued from sales of cowpeas produce and appraising training impact were the guiding objectives. The T-Test analysis results showed a significance difference of 1between trained and untrained women’s level of  participation in household decision making and planning with (0.015 p value), income realised from cowpea produce (0.041 p value), ownership of productive assets (0.017 p value and food security (0.039 p value). The significant differences in favour of the treatment (trained) group signified the positive impact of targeted couple trainings. Thus, training proved to have promoted women participation in economic household decision making processes with their improved self-confidence, signifying significances of targeted training. Trainings also improved coordination between spouses in areas of input acquisition, planning, decision making as well as marketing and accountability over use of proceeds. The implication of these results was that development partners and extension agents should add couple/ household targeted gender and agricultural trainings to tackle gender challenges that retard commercialization of cowpeas production and other potential crops labeled ‘women’s crops’.