Cargill has launched a series of projects designed to help understand and overcome the barriers for women in cocoa farming communities in Côte d’Ivoire, in partnership with Kellogg and British supermarket chain Asda.
The projects aim to improve understanding of how gender barriers may limit access to skills, information and inputs among female cocoa farmers. They consist of a gender sensitisation training program for agents from Côte d’Ivoire’s national agency for rural development; a situational analysis into the barriers preventing women cocoa farmers from attending cocoa field school, with help from humanitarian aid agency Care; and the funding of specific, female-only training for up to 1,000 farmers to help them improve their agricultural and business skills, supported by the African Cocoa Initiative.
Cargill hopes that the projects will support female farmers to grow from subsistence farming to smallholder production and beyond, and help to more accurately reflect the role that women play as part of Africa’s agricultural workforce. Women farmers represent nearly half of all agricultural workers on the continent, Cargill said, but their role was often under-recognised because it was balanced with domestic work.
Cargill director of cocoa sustainability Taco Terheijden said: “Côte d’Ivoire is the largest cocoa producing country in the world, yet estimates shows only 4% of cocoa farmers are women. With support from Kellogg and Asda, we’re aiming to better understand the barriers to women in cocoa farming communities and initiate activities that give women the access to training, support and education to improve their own and their families’ livelihoods.”
And N’Dry Florence, head of the Dabou area for Côte d’Ivoire’s national agency for rural development, Anader, said: “The inclusion of women in training sessions and fully recognising the contribution they make in cocoa production is an important element for the production of cocoa quality and improving the living conditions of their families.”
Asda senior director of sustainable business Christopher Brown added: “Asda recognises the crucial role that women play in the production of cocoa. It is important that their voice is heard in the discussions on the future of cocoa. This may be the first time the supply chain, from retail shelf to food manufacturer to processor and the farmer, have come together on gender issues. Asda is pleased to be able to link with our partners on this project, Cargill and Kellogg, to use our contributions to develop and raise awareness of women’s’ roles in cocoa farming.”
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