The objective of this report is to identify areas that the African Development Bank (AfDB) and its partners could target to empower women economically in agriculture. Addressing the barriers that reduce the participation of women along the agricultural value chain, from production through to processing and trade will be pivotal in transforming their role in the sector and in empowering them economically. Four sub-sectors were selected for analysis in this study: cocoa, coffee, cotton and cassava. The first three were selected based on their economic significance for the region, due to their current export value and potential for further value add: they are largely exported from Africa unprocessed (e.g., amongst top African producers, 66–100 percent of cocoa, coffee, and cotton exports are unprocessed depending on the country), with minimal value addition to the raw product happening locally. The fourth sub-sector, cassava, was selected due to its high production value and contribution to regional food security. Cassava also presents opportunities to expand export market share by improving processing techniques and integrating production into regional and global value chains. Collectively, these four sub-sectors account for USD 43 billion in production value and USD 12 billion in export value across the focus countries.
Source: African Development Bank
