In the Tigray region of Ethiopia, agriculture is transformed through small-scale mechanization. In the Emba Alaje district, the Dellet Agricultural Mechanization Youth Group has been providing Mechanization services with twowheel tractors to the local community. Since 2021, the group has been supported by the Integrated Soil Fertility Management Project and CIMMYT through trainings and the provision of accessories for their tractors. By modernizing traditional farming methods, which relied on animal and human power, they help local farmers increase productivity, reduce labour, and adapt to climate change. This shift not only boosts agricultural output but also contributes to higher incomes and better livelihoods for smallholder farmers in the region.

➢ Local production of stoves and fuel started

➢ Fuel from waste and sustainably grown wood from agroforestry plantations

➢ Establishment of 4 workshops per year

➢ 50 jobs per workshop

➢ biochar from households is used for biochar-compost production (carbon removal)

Women suffer disproportionally from time poverty, often spending 16 h a day working. This severely limits their possibilities to participate in capacity building (reach) or to implement measures (benefit) as well as their ability to participate and advocate in decision-making processes (empower).

An anthropological study revealed that farm work such as planting, processing, threshing/shelling and weeding consume much of their time. Also fetching water is a huge challenge. Women headed households are also unable to plough their fields without support by male relative and are therefore often disowned of their property or its economic use. Moreover, unequal access to resources exacerbates these challenges, hindering women from realizing their full potential in the agricultural sector.

Some of these constrains can be addressed by the broad deployment of small-scale mechanization options. Two-wheel tractors operated by local service providers have been shown to be in great demand especially by women.