GCAN Ethiopia FSS

17/08/2026

FSS Holds Third Multi-Stakeholder Policy Dialogue on Gender, Climate Change and Nutrition

Forum for Social Studies (FSS) in partnership with International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) organized the third Multi-stakeholders Platform Workshop (MSP) of the Gender, Climate Change and Nutrition integration initiative (GCAN) on August 11, 2026. The event brought together policymakers, researchers, civil society representatives, and media professionals to explore the interconnected challenges of gender equality, climate resilience, and nutrition, three critical areas increasingly recognized as closely linked to Ethiopia’s development agenda.

The program commenced with a welcoming address by Dr. Yeraswork Admassie (Executive Director, FSS), followed by an operational overview provided by Dr. Selam Esayas, the GCAN project lead. She noted that the GCAN initiative is a three-year project which was launched in 2024 strategically merges gender, climate, and nutrition under an integrated multi-team framework.
The workshop featured presentations by researchers and policy experts: Dr. Matyas Atnafu (Senior Researcher, MSI Ethiopia) presented on “Climate Change and Food Security in Ethiopia: Lessons Learned, Persistent Challenges and Pathways Forward”, remarking that Ethiopia faces a severe top-10 global food security crisis driven by rainfall declines, localized conflict, and low adaptive capacity. He emphasized that scaling climate-smart agriculture and cash-based safety nets like the Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) remain vital.
The second presenter Ato Tolosa Benti (Climate Change and MRV Expert, Ministry of Agriculture) presenting on “Climate Change, Food Security and Policy Implementation in Ethiopia: Gaps, Lesson and Future Directions”, detailed how flagship projects like the Green Legacy Initiative, the National Wheat Initiative, and Yelemat Turufat (የልማት ቱሩፋት) are driving agricultural transformation under the Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda. Ato Tolosa also traced Ethiopia's climate policy progress from the 1995 Constitution to the Climate-Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) Strategy, highlighting international climate financing access and long-term low-emission planning.
Institutional partners underscored the shift toward integrated ministerial ex*****on. From Addis Ababa University and GCAN team member Dr. Tirisit Sahledengle stressed that climate change demands a unified response across institutional boundaries, ensuring that gender, climate, and food systems are managed collaboratively rather than in isolated silos. W/ro. Rehima Mohammed from the Ministry of Planning and Development pointed out that individual ministries now independently design and execute environmental strategies, guaranteeing coordinated roles across the entire agricultural value chain from planting to marketing process while embedding gender equality into active ex*****on.
The workshop concluded with an extensive interactive discussion and Q&A session. Participants affirmed that integrating gender, climate, and food systems significantly elevates institutional effectiveness, establishing a robust collaborative foundation for ongoing stakeholder engagement.

11/08/2026

The Forum for Social Studies (FSS) is currently holding its 3rd Multi-Stakeholder Platform (MSP) Workshop, bringing together key stakeholders working on gender, climate change, and nutrition.
The workshop provides an important platform for dialogue, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing among stakeholders. It aims to strengthen coordination and promote integrated approaches to addressing the interconnected challenges of gender, climate change, and nutrition.

27/07/2026

Dear Colleagues,

The Forum for Social Studies (FSS) warmly invites you to attend the upcoming GCAN Webinar scheduled for Wednesday 29 July, 2026, at 3:00 PM.

We are pleased to host Abera Ogato , currently a PhD student of Social Anthropology at Addis Ababa University who will present his research titled:

"We don’t know what to do: youth climate mobility and social protection in the Gamo Highlands, South Ethiopia"

This webinar will present insights into how climate hazards drive migration and shape the mobility decisions of rural communities with a special focus on the Gamo Highlands. The presentation will also show how climate-related risks have contributed to youth migration in the area and discuss the role of social protection in mediating climate-induced mobility and enhancing community resilience in the face of environmental change.

The Gender, Climate Change, and Nutrition Integration Initiative (GCAN) is a collaborative project led by IFPRI, the Forum for Social Studies (FSS), and WE-Action. The project promotes evidence-based dialogue and action at the intersection of gender equality, climate resilience, and nutrition to support sustainable development in Ethiopia. Through its webinar series, GCAN creates a platform for knowledge exchange among researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.

Google Meet joining info

Wednesday, July 29 · 3:00 – 4:30pm

Time zone: Africa/Nairobi
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/otq-fvua-uye

We encourage your participation in this engaging session and look forward to your valuable contributions to the discussion.

Kind regards,
GCAN Project Team
Forum for Social Studies (FSS)

23/06/2026

Dear friends and colleagues,
The Forum for Social Studies (FSS) warmly invites you to attend the upcoming GCAN Webinar on “When Culture Shapes the Plate: A Sociological Analysis of Gender, norms, and Institutional Control in Maternal Nutrition” scheduled for Friday, June 26, 2026, at 3:00 PM.
Google Meet joining info
Link: https://meet.google.com/yfp-hott-tsq
We encourage your participation in this engaging session and look forward to your valuable contributions to the discussion.

GCAN Project Team

23/06/2026

Women and girls often carry the hidden costs of global crises.

A recent IFPRI blog, “Women as Shock Absorbers: Gendered Costs of the Global Fuel and Fertilizer Crisis,” highlights how rising fuel and fertilizer prices have created unique challenges for women and girls, affecting livelihoods, food security, and household responsibilities.
The researchers emphasize the importance of gender-responsive solutions that address these inequalities and strengthen more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agrifood systems.
This is an important reminder that building stronger communities requires policies that recognize and respond to the experiences of women and girls.



🔗

This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn

06/05/2026

Training on Gender, Climate Change, and Nutrition (GCAN) Integration
April 21–23, 2026
The Forum for Social Studies (FSS), through the Gender, Climate Change, and Nutrition Integration Initiative (GCAN) project implemented in partnership with IFPRI and WE-Action, organized a three-day capacity-strengthening training from April 21–23, 2026, in Addis Ababa. The training brought together 21 participants from government ministries, civil society organizations, academia, research institutions, young climate advocates, and regional Bureaus of Agriculture, reflecting strong cross-sectoral representation of institutions working on gender equality, climate change, and nutrition.
The training was delivered by two senior experts, Martha Nemera and Lemma Tesfaye from WE-Action, and aimed to strengthen participants’ understanding of the interlinkages between gender, climate change, and nutrition, while building their capacity to apply integrated analytical tools to policy and program design.
The training opened with a keynote address from the project lead Dr. Selam Esayas followed by participant introductions and an expectations-mapping exercise. Participants highlighted the need for practical analytical tools and stronger research engagement around the GCAN nexus, while also noting concerns related to time limitations and sustaining engagement throughout the training period. Ground rules were collectively established to ensure active participation, respectful dialogue, and collaborative learning. Participants also completed a pre-training assessment to establish a baseline understanding of key concepts and practices related to gender, climate change, and nutrition.
Day One focused on conceptual foundations, including gender analysis, climate change vulnerability and adaptation, and nutrition security. Through interactive exercises, group discussions, and visual learning tools, participants explored gender roles, power relations, and the gendered impacts of resource access. Sessions also introduced key concepts of climate vulnerability and nutrition-sensitive interventions, supported by scenario-based group work. The day concluded with reflections on relevant global and regional policy frameworks.
Day Two emphasized the application of the GCAN nexus framework in policy, strategy, and project design. Participants engaged in marketplace-style peer learning exercises and group work to apply GCAN analytical tools to policy scenarios. Sessions also focused on translating policy objectives into measurable outcomes using integrated planning approaches.
Day Three began with participants reflecting on key lessons from previous sessions and exploring leadership, coordination, and communication roles in advancing integrated programming. This was followed by group presentations focused on policy analysis using the GCAN framework and the development of theory-of-change pathways. Subsequent sessions addressed GCAN implementation and monitoring and evaluation (MEL). Participants also engaged in scenario-based exercises on implementation and monitoring approaches. The training concluded with a post-training assessment to evaluate changes in their knowledge and overall learning outcomes.
Overall, the training strengthened participants’ conceptual understanding of the GCAN nexus and enhanced their capacity to apply integrated analytical tools to support evidence-informed policy development and program implementation across gender, climate change, and nutrition sectors in Ethiopia.
The training concluded with a certificate award ceremony, where certificates of appreciation were presented to all participants by Dr. Selam Esayas, GCAN Ethiopia Project Lead at FSS.

21/04/2026

A three-day capacity-building training program on Gender, Climate Change, and Nutrition Integration (GCAN) for stakeholders in the initiative kicked off today at Vibes Hotel in Addis Ababa.
The training focuses on the policy and program cycle, with particular emphasis on the GCAN nexus. It is guided by the findings of a capacity needs assessment conducted at the outset of the project, ensuring that the sessions are responsive to the specific gaps and priorities identified among stakeholders.

09/01/2026

The Forum for Social Studies (FSS) convened a workshop on Friday, December 19, 2025, at its headquarters in Addis Ababa to present and validate key findings from the Capacity Needs Assessment conducted under the GCAN initiative. The session ran from 8:30 AM to 1:00 PM.

The workshop opened with a welcoming address by Dr. Yeraswork Admassie, Executive Director of FSS. This was followed by two key presentations:

• Dr. Tadesse Zerfu, Senior Research Fellow at IFPRI, provided an overview of the GCAN project and shared survey results from the capacity needs assessment across five countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Senegal, Nigeria, and India.

•Dr. Selam Esayas, GCAN Ethiopia Initiative Lead, presented Ethiopia-specific findings of the qualitative assessment highlighting capacity challenges and strengths at both organizational and system levels, along with actionable recommendations for support.
After the presentations, participants drawn from government agencies, civil society, academia, and media engaged in a dynamic discussion chaired by Dr. Selam. Towards the end of the workshop, attendees were divided into two groups to reflect on identified gaps, priority skills for strengthening, and additional suggestions to complement the assessment’s recommendations.

The workshop, attended by about 23 stakeholders, generated valuable insights that will refine the assessment and guide next steps in capacity development efforts under the GCAN Ethiopia initiative