STiR coffee and tea magazine

40 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 3, 2017 (June/July) F By Kelly Stein Empowering Coffee Women Women are perhaps the greatest untapped resource available to avert challenges to the coffee industry globally "Studies show that when women are supported and empowered, all of society benefits. Their families are healthier, more children attend school, agricultural productivity improves, and incomes increase." - The Hunger Project ear of a pending coffee shortage is leading important players in coffee to re- view and, in many instances, change long-standing policies and strategies. But efforts to address environmental, social, and economic issues are often made without consideration of a key element: gender equity. Sergio Parreiras Pereira with the Campinas Agronomic Institute (IAC) says "There is a huge gap to be developed with women in rural and urban segments. It is important to look carefully their role from seed to sip." Working directly with family farm training programs and scientific research on a daily basis, Pereira noticed how empowered women change their surroundings. It is for this reason, he says, that he became a big supporter of the work of the International Women's Coffee Alliance in Brazil. According to the report, Rural Women and the Millennium Development Goal, women in agriculture, more often then men, work unpaid: "When they do work for wages, rural women are more likely to be employed in part-time, seasonal, and/or low-paying work. Men's average wages are higher than women's in both rural and urban areas." It remains common to hear of husbands that will not allow their wives to work, or worse, to prohibit working women from having a say in spending the money they earn. The macho tradition that prevails in most of South and Central America significantly hampers the important role women can play. There is also a lack of basic working conditions, fewer legal rights, limited training, and high levels of domestic violence. All endanger the family farming concept, affecting the coffee production. "Rural women play a key role in supporting their households and communities in achieving food and nutrition security, generating income, and improving rural liveli- hoods and overall well-being. […] Yet, every day, around the world, rural women and girls face persistent structural constraints that prevent them from fully enjoying their human rights," according to the United Nations Women Watch Program. 1 The United Nations estimates 25 million smallholder farms, mainly operated by families, produce 80% of the world's coffee. In many instances half of that potential is underdeveloped. Simone Sampaio with her award-winning coffee at Mata de Minas in Minas Gerais, Brazil. She credits Senar Minas training. 1 The United Nations Women Watch Program fact sheet is was produced by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Rural Women, which is led by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), IFAD and WFP. Member organizations include: ITC-ILO, SPFII, UNCTAD, UNDP, UNEP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNIDO, UN Women, and the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition, a substantial contribution was made by UNAIDS.

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