Post by Sharon Nambozo

🌱 ERI Systematization 2026: Learning from Our Practice, Strengthening Change 🌱 From 4th–7th May 2026, the facilitation team successfully organized and synthesized findings from the ERI Systematization 2026 process, drawing on evidence from 207 household interviews, 22 FGDs, and 69 KIIs across ERI partner organizations. This year’s systematization focused on “Access to Resources, Land, and Finance for Increased Production,” with central attention on gender disparities in decision-making, social and cultural norms, equitable access to productive resources, and enterprise selection. The exercise provided an important opportunity to reflect on how the ERI approach influenced access to land and finance, enterprise development, household relations, and decision-making between 2023 and 2025. The findings reveal encouraging progress. ERI performed particularly well in promoting mindset change, household dialogue, participatory planning, savings culture, and enterprise-oriented thinking. Through visioning, resource mapping, financial literacy, enterprise development, and gender relations sessions, many households reported stronger cooperation, reduced conflict, improved financial management, and more joint decision-making. Key turning points in the change process included: ✅ Participation of both spouses in ERI sessions and joint reflection ✅ Stronger savings groups and financial literacy practices ✅ Transition from subsistence farming to enterprise-oriented production ✅ Recognition of women and youth as economic actors and decision-makers ✅ Peer learning and exposure that challenged traditional norms At the same time, the systematization reminds us that transformation is still unfolding. Persistent barriers continue to affect equitable access to productive resources, including: 🔸 Patriarchal and inheritance norms limiting women’s and youth’s land ownership 🔸 Male dominance in major financial and land-related decisions 🔸 Limited access to affordable finance and collateral 🔸 Unequal control over enterprise income and productive assets 🔸 Low literacy and climate-related production risks affecting enterprise growth While more households increasingly report “we sit together and decide,” some still experience situations where “the husband decides everything,” highlighting the deeper social and structural barriers that remain. Key recommendations emerged to strengthen future programming: 📌 Deepen gender-transformative facilitation and household dialogue 📌 Strengthen awareness on land rights and co-ownership of assets 📌 Expand financial literacy and tailored financing for women and youth 📌 Promote policy dialogue with local authorities and financial institutions 📌 Continue documenting success stories and turning points for peer learning and scaling A sincere appreciation to partners, communities, and local leaders whose openness and participation continue to make learning and transformation possible. 🌍✨