Women's Economic Empowerment
The Georgian Tea Sector: A Value Chain Study
The European Union is supporting rural development in Georgia through its European Neighbourhood Programme for Agriculture and Rural Development (ENPARD). Implemented since 2013, with a total budget of EUR 102 million in 2013-2019, the main goal of ENPARD is to reduce rural poverty in Georgia. The first phase of ENPARD in Georgia focused on developing the potential of agriculture. The second phase focuses on creating economic opportunities for rural population that go beyond agricultural activities. More information on ENPARD is available at: www.enpard.ge
The main goal of this study is to identify approaches through which the competitiveness of the Georgian tea sector can be improved. We analyze and describe the complete tea sector value chain in Georgia. To this end, we propose different policy approaches aimed at improving overall productivity in the sector. Read More...
The main goal of this study is to identify approaches through which the competitiveness of the Georgian tea sector can be improved. We analyze and describe the complete tea sector value chain in Georgia. To this end, we propose different policy approaches aimed at improving overall productivity in the sector. Read More...
Etude de base du projet « Autonomisation des femmes à travers l’entreprenariat durable »
Report on the Baseline Assessment carried out for the CARE Morocco project AFED (Autonomisation des femmes à travers l’entrepreneuriat durable), also known as WESE in English (Women’s Empowerment through Sustainable Entrepreneurship). This project is implemented in the region of Marrakech between May 2018 and April 2023 and is funded by Global Affairs Canada. Read More...
Addressing Root Causes Project in South Sudan
The Addressing Root Causes (ARC) project that started in September 2016, aims at tackling the root causes of armed conflict, instability and irregular migration in South Sudan by increasing community resilience to conflict-related and economically-induced shocks in 19 payams in Jonglei state in the counties of Pibor, Twic East, Duk and Bor. The project has distinguished three outcomes areas: Economic Resilience, Peaceful Conflict Resolution and Social Cohesion which are expected to be mutually reinforcing and when all are combined and stregthened together, the beneficial effects will contribute to more resilience and a culture of peace.
This mid-term review was conducted to assess the progress of project implementation since September 2016, and document best practices and lessons learned to inform key stakeholders on future activity design, programming, and implementation. Primary data was collected using household survey, key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions with the targeted communities. Combined with the FGD, a Social Norm Analysis Plot (SNAP) framework was applied as it was considered best suited to measure changes in social (gender) norms.
Key findings from review indicate access to loans and training of VSLA groups is empowering women and youth in the targeted communities to engage in IGAs and micro-enterprises, thereby broadening their livelihood and resilience options and creating market linkages with traders across different ethnic communities. Further, more women and youth reported being confident to participate in economic opportunities and possess relevant tools and skills; and the role of women and youth is being appreciated in contributing to meeting household needs, thereby reflecting the conflict and gender transformation in the targeted communities. It should however be noted that more VSLAs have been formed and are engaged in IGAs and micro-enterprises in Duk and Twic East compared to Bor and Pibor.
Also, peace committees are appreciated and recognized by the targeted communities for facilitating and using peaceful mechanisms to mitigate and resolve intra and – inter community conflict and reconcile past grievances. Most project beneficiaries also reported increased collaboration with each other, and feel have more positive relationships and trust within and beyond their community. Read More...
This mid-term review was conducted to assess the progress of project implementation since September 2016, and document best practices and lessons learned to inform key stakeholders on future activity design, programming, and implementation. Primary data was collected using household survey, key Informant Interviews and Focus Group Discussions with the targeted communities. Combined with the FGD, a Social Norm Analysis Plot (SNAP) framework was applied as it was considered best suited to measure changes in social (gender) norms.
Key findings from review indicate access to loans and training of VSLA groups is empowering women and youth in the targeted communities to engage in IGAs and micro-enterprises, thereby broadening their livelihood and resilience options and creating market linkages with traders across different ethnic communities. Further, more women and youth reported being confident to participate in economic opportunities and possess relevant tools and skills; and the role of women and youth is being appreciated in contributing to meeting household needs, thereby reflecting the conflict and gender transformation in the targeted communities. It should however be noted that more VSLAs have been formed and are engaged in IGAs and micro-enterprises in Duk and Twic East compared to Bor and Pibor.
Also, peace committees are appreciated and recognized by the targeted communities for facilitating and using peaceful mechanisms to mitigate and resolve intra and – inter community conflict and reconcile past grievances. Most project beneficiaries also reported increased collaboration with each other, and feel have more positive relationships and trust within and beyond their community. Read More...
PROFIT Financial Graduation
The PROFIT Financial Graduation Sub-Component, funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Government of Kenya (GOK), aimed to enable vulnerable women and youth to build sustainable livelihoods and reduce risk aversion on supply and demand sides of financial sustainability through a sequenced set of interventions, including an asset transfer, technical and life skills training, mentorship, consumption and savings support. The program targeted 1,000 women and youth in Kitui and 1,600 women in Samburu. Ultimately, the goal of the program is to place vulnerable households on an upward trajectory out of ultra-poverty.
Since January 2017, with technical assistance from BRAC USA, the PROFIT Financial Graduation program was implemented by The BOMA Project and CARE International Kenya in Samburu and Kitui, respectively. Expanding Opportunities conducted a quasi-experimental impact evaluation of the PROFIT Financial Graduation pilots by assessing changes in income, savings, food security, health, and confidence that can be reliably attributed to program activities. This report comprises the results of the endline impact evaluation. Read More...
Since January 2017, with technical assistance from BRAC USA, the PROFIT Financial Graduation program was implemented by The BOMA Project and CARE International Kenya in Samburu and Kitui, respectively. Expanding Opportunities conducted a quasi-experimental impact evaluation of the PROFIT Financial Graduation pilots by assessing changes in income, savings, food security, health, and confidence that can be reliably attributed to program activities. This report comprises the results of the endline impact evaluation. Read More...
Pathways Project End of Project Evaluation Report
Pathways aimed to increase productivity and income in equitable agriculture systems. CARE innovated an effective Theory of Change to address real issues affecting rural women farmers by providing them with capacities in agriculture; access to inputs, extension services and markets; empowerment to influence decisions; and an enabling environment for growth.
Pathways has met and, in most cases, surpassed targets set in its M&E framework. In the words of women themselves the project has worked very well, focusing on groundnuts and soybean as high-value cash crop substitutes for tobacco because of their high potential for markets, ability to replenish the lost soil fertility and strong nutritional value. It has grown from working with 9,000 to 14,282 farmers (hosting a population of 71,410 people), organising them into 1,528 groups. Women provide leadership to most of the groups after being transformed to become successful wives, farmers and entrepreneurs who can make independent decisions and speak in public.
In 2015 alone, collective sale revenues from groundnuts and soy amounted to MK128, 601,938 (US$233,821.7) and rose to MK854, 356,267 (US$751,511) by the end of 2017. Contract farming organized by the project contributed US$34,233 to these revenues. In 2014, the project conducted 188 community-wide gender dialogue sessions and reached out to 9,654 people, 7193 female and 2464 male, helping them to internalize and address gender inequalities. Men have generally started looking at women as partners in agriculture and development that is cementing marriage bonds and creating an enabling environment for women to succeed. Along with this, CARE Malawi linked women farmers to key players in the groundnut and soy value chains to help them excel.
As a consequence, by December 2016 a total of 246 farmer groups had accounts with OIBM and other banks through which they saved MK49, 175,577 and 6 VSLs accessed two group loans worth MK4,800,000 (US$7,804.88) which they invested in agriculture, business and VSL activities. VSLs profited and shared out US$871,178 in the year, with more benefits seen in 2017 when savings accumulated to US$3,756,435 e.g. earnings of MK47, 489.32 to MK204, 769.33 per household on average. In turn, per capita household monthly incomes and expenditures doubled by the time the project closed in December 2018. Although agricultural productivity continued to decline over the project life due to poor weather conditions, Pathways farmers remained food secure and continued to eat at least two meals a day. Household dietary diversity (HDDS) and women intra-household food access (AHA) data from this evaluation found levels of consumption to be acceptable and typical of food secure households. These results showcase that Pathways beneficiaries have grown their incomes, assets and food availability in the face of the changing climate and are better off even in difficult years. Read More...
Pathways has met and, in most cases, surpassed targets set in its M&E framework. In the words of women themselves the project has worked very well, focusing on groundnuts and soybean as high-value cash crop substitutes for tobacco because of their high potential for markets, ability to replenish the lost soil fertility and strong nutritional value. It has grown from working with 9,000 to 14,282 farmers (hosting a population of 71,410 people), organising them into 1,528 groups. Women provide leadership to most of the groups after being transformed to become successful wives, farmers and entrepreneurs who can make independent decisions and speak in public.
In 2015 alone, collective sale revenues from groundnuts and soy amounted to MK128, 601,938 (US$233,821.7) and rose to MK854, 356,267 (US$751,511) by the end of 2017. Contract farming organized by the project contributed US$34,233 to these revenues. In 2014, the project conducted 188 community-wide gender dialogue sessions and reached out to 9,654 people, 7193 female and 2464 male, helping them to internalize and address gender inequalities. Men have generally started looking at women as partners in agriculture and development that is cementing marriage bonds and creating an enabling environment for women to succeed. Along with this, CARE Malawi linked women farmers to key players in the groundnut and soy value chains to help them excel.
As a consequence, by December 2016 a total of 246 farmer groups had accounts with OIBM and other banks through which they saved MK49, 175,577 and 6 VSLs accessed two group loans worth MK4,800,000 (US$7,804.88) which they invested in agriculture, business and VSL activities. VSLs profited and shared out US$871,178 in the year, with more benefits seen in 2017 when savings accumulated to US$3,756,435 e.g. earnings of MK47, 489.32 to MK204, 769.33 per household on average. In turn, per capita household monthly incomes and expenditures doubled by the time the project closed in December 2018. Although agricultural productivity continued to decline over the project life due to poor weather conditions, Pathways farmers remained food secure and continued to eat at least two meals a day. Household dietary diversity (HDDS) and women intra-household food access (AHA) data from this evaluation found levels of consumption to be acceptable and typical of food secure households. These results showcase that Pathways beneficiaries have grown their incomes, assets and food availability in the face of the changing climate and are better off even in difficult years. Read More...
Context et Analyse Politique, Action, et Strategie de Plaidoyer
La présente étude se situe dans le cadre de l’élaboration d’une stratégie de plaidoyer qui vise à mener une analyse complète des politiques existantes favorables ou non aux femmes entrepreneurs, du contexte et des acteurs de leur mise en oeuvre en Côte d’ivoire afin d’orienter la conception d’une stratégie de plaidoyer au niveau nationale pour le Programme « Femmes en Entreprise », en mettant l’accent sur le plaidoyer en faveur du développement des femmes entrepreneurs. Une collecte des données a été effectuée à Abidjan et dans les régions du TONKPI et du GBEKE auprès des acteurs impliqués dans la problématique de l’autonomisation des femmes, de l’inclusion financière et de l’entreprenariat féminin.
A l’issue des analyses, des obstacles au développement de l’entreprenariat ont été identifiés ; il s’agit notamment du faible niveau d’instruction des femmes, de l’accès limité au crédit, à la terre et à l’information relatives aux activités entrepreneuriales et au manque de culture entrepreneuriale. Read More...
A l’issue des analyses, des obstacles au développement de l’entreprenariat ont été identifiés ; il s’agit notamment du faible niveau d’instruction des femmes, de l’accès limité au crédit, à la terre et à l’information relatives aux activités entrepreneuriales et au manque de culture entrepreneuriale. Read More...
Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Project Rwanda (GEWEP II)
The present report summarizes the findings of the end line study conducted to measure the progress of key project outcome indicators against the baseline values of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment Programme (GEWEP) II and the status and progress in women’s empowerment in the GEWEP II project zone of influence.
GEWEP II is a four years (2016-2019) project funded by NORAD through CARE Norway and implemented by a consortium of three Local Non-Government Organization (LNGOs) namely Association Rwandaise des Travailleurs Chrétiens Féminins (ARTCF), Rwanda Men’s Resource Centre (RWAMREC), Pro-Femmes Twese Hamwe and CARE International in Rwanda as a lead partner. GEWEP II builds on GEWEP I (2014-2015) and on Women’s Empowerment Programme (2009-2013) and has the main purpose of empowering women and girls facing poverty, inequality, violence and social exclusion to claim and realize their human rights. GEWEP II has four crosscutting thematic focus areas: (i) Strengthening of civil society, (ii) women’s economic empowerment and entrepreneurship, (iii) women’s participation in decision-making processes and (iv) men’s engagement in transforming gender norms. Connected to these four areas, CARE has developed global outcome indicators. Read More...
GEWEP II is a four years (2016-2019) project funded by NORAD through CARE Norway and implemented by a consortium of three Local Non-Government Organization (LNGOs) namely Association Rwandaise des Travailleurs Chrétiens Féminins (ARTCF), Rwanda Men’s Resource Centre (RWAMREC), Pro-Femmes Twese Hamwe and CARE International in Rwanda as a lead partner. GEWEP II builds on GEWEP I (2014-2015) and on Women’s Empowerment Programme (2009-2013) and has the main purpose of empowering women and girls facing poverty, inequality, violence and social exclusion to claim and realize their human rights. GEWEP II has four crosscutting thematic focus areas: (i) Strengthening of civil society, (ii) women’s economic empowerment and entrepreneurship, (iii) women’s participation in decision-making processes and (iv) men’s engagement in transforming gender norms. Connected to these four areas, CARE has developed global outcome indicators. Read More...