Scaling Up Gender Equality through Women-Led Agroecology in West Africa

The project addresses rural women and girls’ challenges in agriculture due to unequal access to knowledge and natural and financial resources. These challenges also include opportunities for political agency decision-making and leadership roles. The project contributes to poverty reduction and climate resilience by strengthening women's rights and helping them to implement agroecological approaches and sustainable business practices It delivers meaningful changes in the lives of rural women girls and their communities. The project works with local partners in targeted countries who organize and mentor village-level women’s groups to strengthen their power and influence. Local partners provide training in agroecology fostering the production of nutritious crops that have adapted over generations to flourish in local conditions. The project helps establish processing and distribution networks owned and operated by women’s collectives who sell directly to consumers in nearby urban areas. The local implementing partners are Inades Formation Burkina Faso Inades Formation Togo Enda Pronat (in Senegal) and Tiniguena (in Guinée-Bissau). The project also has a regional partner COPAGEN (Coalition pour la protection du patrimoine génétique africain/Coalition for the Protection of African Genetic Heritage).

The expected outcomes of this project include: (1) enhanced political agency of marginalized rural women in leadership and decision- making processes by strengthening the capacity of women’s organizations and networks and increasing their advocacy skills for effective engagement with decision-makers; (2) improved access to and control over economic resources by marginalized rural women through climate-resilient and biodiverse food systems; and (3) improved women’s business and marketing skills.