Maisha Makutano, Kenya’s new edutainment series, features ILRI’s gender and livestock research
CGIAR; October 12 2025
When researchers from the gender team at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) met the team working on Maisha Makutano, an edutainment soap opera tackling challenging social themes from financial inclusion to reproductive health, there was plenty to talk about.
As the production team was defining the social themes to highlight in the new series, ILRI researchers were trying to solve another problem: what kinds of interventions could help women agripreneurs succeed in their livestock businesses?
Too often, gender norms hold them back, restricting access to resources, credit, better breeds, and sometimes even respect from their families and communities.
One potential solution is Women in Business.
When researchers from the gender team at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) met the team working on “Maisha Makutano”, an edutainment soap opera tackling challenging social themes from financial inclusion to reproductive health, there was plenty to talk about.
As the production team was defining the social themes to highlight in the new series, ILRI researchers were trying to solve another problem: what kinds of interventions could help women agripreneurs succeed in their livestock businesses? Too often, gender norms hold them back, restricting access to resources, credit, better breeds, and sometimes even respect from their families and communities. One potential solution is Women in Business.
“Women in Business is a business model that engages women vets and para-vets to provide women chicken farmers from remote areas with good breeds, animal health services, and markets,” explains Alessandra Galiè, principal scientist and ILRI gender team lead.
Initially developed as a pilot in Tanzania and Ethiopia, the model has been scaled by the Tanzanian Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, adopted by AKM Glitters, a private hatchery, and was identified by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for scaling to two other African countries before the organization was defunded.
The Maisha Makutano team agreed that including the Women in Business model in the TV series would be a perfect way to discuss the gender norms women in agribusiness face, from lack of capital to push-back from the community if she starts earning more than her husband, boyfriend, father, or brother. Produced by The Mediae Company, Maisha Makutano is a spinoff of “Makutano Junction”, which premiered in 2006 and ran for 15 seasons, reaching 8.6 million viewers through Citizen TV.
“The series is deeply rooted in research, ensuring that its themes resonate with local audiences while sparking real conversations and behavior change,” producer Rahma Seif explained.
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