H=husbands, W=wives; *sig.<0.1; mean and correlations estimated from ratings: 2=more increased, 1=increased but not much 0=no change, -1=reduced but not much, -2=reduced a lot;¥reversed rating

Provisioning ecosystem services: land productivity

From the survey, it is evident that men and women have different perspectives on the contribution of restoration measures to land productivity (Fig. 4). Although both gave positive ratings, men gave a much higher rating of increase in production while women rated a lower productivity increase. We also observe that 10% of women in Basona-worena indicated that productivity was reduced. During the FDG, men of Amhara indicated that after the restoration intervention, there are higher satisfaction levels regarding soil erosion decline and fuelwood availability restoration benefits. Despite the human and livestock population growth that creates pressure on the land resources, men indicated that degradation in the area is decreasing. They attributed the decline to farmer awareness that land is a scarce resource and a better understanding of the advantages of restoration structures in improving soil fertility and producing food from the existing plots. Most farmers construct the stone and soil bunds, and plant grass along the soil bund (Dehso and Phalaris).
Considering productivity reduction as a degradation syndrome, although the residual effects of deforestation and overgrazing still cause long-term productivity loss in Ethiopia (Gebreselassie et al., 2016; Kumasi and Asenso-Okyere, 2011), both men and women of Amhara and SNNP rated them as moderate or least contributors to the productivity loss (Fig. 3). Instead, around 50% of both women and men considered the ongoing nutrient mining or loss and topsoil loss due to erosion to greatly affect productivity (Fig. 4). The soil fertility decline degradation syndrome is perceived to greatly contribute to productivity decline by more women in Doyogena but more men in Basona-worena. In both sites, more men consider erosion to greatly impact land productivity than women. These narratives relate to their perception on causes of root causes and signals the orientation of men towards more physical erosion forces measures while women focus on man-made degradation pathways.