Acknowledging that gender equality is a major concern and is a part of the sustainability in coffee. Did you know that out of the 25 million coffee shops around the world only 5 million of them are owned by women. That’s a significant gap between men and women coffee farm operators. I read the International Coffee Organization (ICO) report on gender equality in the coffee sector; there are some astonishing findings that I would like to address.
The report provided evidence on the extent and the determinants of the gender gap in coffee farming. They used extensive data from agriculture sub-sectors, ICO’s micro-data, and the academic research to support female farmers, rural laborers and entrepreneurs facing constraints in accessing resources hampering their ability to develop their potential. Considering the limited research from the coffee sector, I thought the use of agricultural sub-sector data was brilliant in measuring the restrictions women face.
I quickly wanted to mention that the findings in this report do not include all regions and countries, it is important to not over-generalize these studies.
Depending on the region, women provide up to 70% of labor in coffee production; and between 20%- 30% of coffee farms are female operated. How is it that women are unable to be fully represented for their hard work? Women face a lot of adversities, such as time constraints, inability to obtain land ownership and property rights, a lack of education, a lack of farm extension and training programs, and a lack of financial education and support; just to name a few. It appears that social norms and discrimination against women also contribute to the continuation of the gap between men and women. Overall, research has shown that over time there has been a trend towards closing the gender gap, but significant differences between regions still remain.
Time Constraints
Women have to set allocated time for household chores, more so than men do, such as fetching water, collecting firewood, taking care of children, etc. “Furthermore, time constraints related to double burden of household tasks and farm work, as well as social norms affecting their mobility, may negatively affect women’s ability to participate in farmer training.” (World Bank and IFPRI, 2010) Family responsibilities and cultural norms are factors that continue to bind women in male and female-headed households.
Land ownership
Owning land is beneficial for a number of reasons. Land provides a basis to grow crops, there are tax benefits, and ownership is a solid investment. If farmed sustainably, it can be passed on through generations providing a livelihood for rural communities. “Where gender differences in land ownership are particularly stark, this is often the result of customary practices that limit access to and rights over land. Reasons explaining the differential are often country-specific and include male preference in inheritance, as well as marriage and male bias in land redistribution programs (Deere and Leon, 2003; Melesse, Dabissa, and Bulte, 2017).” In order for women to be able to access land ownership there needs to be an elimination of discriminatory laws and social norms need to become more supportive in increasing gender equity in land inheritance.
Education
From a young age women have had a bias against them in education. Depending on the region, the observation in the differences between men and women in the attainment of education can vary in years of schooling and literacy rates between adult household heads. Education has shown to be beneficial in attaining human capital endowment for farmers.
Farm extension and training programs
Farm extension is the process of educating farmers on how to use new innovative knowledge and scientific research to improve their agricultural practices. Evidence from the coffee sector suggests that women are less likely to receive visits from extension agents or to attend training due to household responsibilities, inability to participate because of time constraints, and social norms might be holding women back from attending these necessary training sessions. “Within the sample of 453 coffee producing households that were interviewed, 58% of male-household heads attended training sessions. In comparison, only 40% of female farmers benefited from these skills transfer opportunities.” (ICO- 2018). In order to address this discrepancy, the report notes that “A gender-sensitive approach to agricultural extension and farmer schools can address the factors limiting women’s access to information on farming techniques and new technologies. Well-designed extension programs take into account the cultural, time, mobility and educational constraints faced by female farmers (Croppenstedt et al., 2013).”
Financial education and support
Moreover, all rural, low-income countries should have resources to access education on how to become more financially stable and secure. Allowing women to have the opportunity to access financial services requires eliminating the restrictions held on women to prevent them from attending training programs in order to grow their financial literacy, obtain bank accounts, and encourage the formation of community-based support groups.
Conclusion
There are many efforts in closing the gender gap which has led me to feel secure with the future of the coffee industry. There have been many public policy responses and private initiatives fabricated to support women’s empowerment. In order for women to feel more supported as farm operators and household heads there needs to be programs in place that address all the limitations that women face. “Policies and programs simultaneously addressing multiple existing constraints can show strong complementarities (FAO, 2011).”
Empowering and uplifting women support other areas such as reducing poverty in all its forms, ending hunger, achieving food security, improved nutrition, promoting a sustainable agriculture, providing strong public-private partnerships, and increasing gender equality. Fostering the growth of gender equality directly contributes to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. “The coffee industry has been successful in implementing elevated private standards and gendered supply chain policies driven by efforts to build a sustainable supply chain and increased consumer awareness in social aspects of coffee farming.” (ICO-2018).
To continue learning, check out the full report here
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