33 million women grow food on plots in sub-Saharan Africa. Greener farming can boost their earnings – study

There are 33 million smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, making up 80% of the total farmer population. These farmers cultivate small plots of land of less than two hectares and don’t make much money, as they generally sell their produce in local markets. They usually lack the funds needed to process their crops into a product that could sell for a higher price, and they struggle to get into supply chains where they could sell for higher prices. Agricultural economist Lesley Hope has researched what is needed for women smallholder farmers to switch to agroecology – environmentally friendly farming that works with nature – and develop thriving businesses at the same time.

What is the role of women in agriculture and how can agroecology help them?

Women make up over half of sub-Saharan Africa’s 33 million smallholder farmers. They don’t just grow crops – they also work in agroprocessing (making crops into other products) and marketing. Women farmers generally have deep-rooted knowledge of local ecosystems, traditional farming and ways to grow and store seeds. However, they cannot easily access productive resources such as land, agricultural equipment or finance.

This is why a set of farming practices that use natural inputs at a lower cost can help women smallholder farmers to build more productive farms. For example, agroecology involves environmentally friendly practices that include:

• reduced use or dependence on synthetic inputs such as chemical fertilisers and pesticides

• the use of organic materials for soil improvement and crop protection, like compost or mulch

• encouraging intercropping (growing two different crops together) or mixed cropping and agroforestry (farming trees with plants)

• the integration of farms with livestock.

Agroecology also supports local markets and a shorter chain for food from the farm to the table. In this way it reduces people’s dependency on buying food at prices that are influenced by the global market. It also means that smallholder farmers do not rely on the global market for purchase of fertilisers and pesticides for their production activities.

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Another advantage of using agroecology is that livestock, fruit trees and several different crops can be farmed at the same time. This means farmers do not need to buy nearly as much as they can often grow enough to feed their families. A diverse food system also copes better with climate change.

Agroecology also offers women the opportunity to create:

• New value chains and markets through organic production. Women who lack funds can concentrate on raising organic crops that they can sell at higher prices.

• Participatory guarantee systems. These are local quality assurance programmes where consumers and producers decide together what quality to aim for, and then give fresh produce a certificate. This also leads to better profits for women farmers.

• A circular and solidarity economy. A circular economy is where waste is recycled (as in composting), reused and recycled. A solidarity economy revolves around common or collective ownership of farms through cooperatives that are people-centred and shared resources. These concepts provide women smallholder farmers with valuable support.

Agroecology already falls in line with women farmers’ practice of backyard farming. It encourages women to use that expertise to feed their families a wider variety of foods and sell the surplus.

Where is agroecology already happening on the continent?

Agroecology is practised all over Africa. In east Africa (Uganda, Tanzania) women-led cooperatives grow organic coffee.

For example, organic farming practices based on traditional knowledge are common in Kenya and other parts of east Africa. In southern Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Ghana and Niger, agroforestry is widely practised.

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Smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe and Zambia practise conservation agriculture, an environmentally friendly farming approach that improves and maintains soil health and productivity by not disturbing or digging the soil, and by sowing a layer of different permanent cover crops.

In Cameroon, integrated pest management strategies like biopesticides and pest-resistant crop varieties are common. Biopesticides are types of pesticides made from natural extracts. They are environmentally friendly and have no negative impact.

In Senegal, women agroecologists have become influential and able to attract funding to improve their farms. Women in Mali and Ghana produce bioenergy and seeds from Jatropha curcas, a plant that treats infections and muscle pain.

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Agroecology is also practised in South Africa, where women smallholder farmers plant trees with crops to reduce water pollution.

Despite this, many women smallholder farmers are still seen as farmers’ wives, rather than farmers in their own right, and don’t get the support they should.

What are your recommendations for the way forward?

First, as this year’s president of the Group of 20 most powerful nations, South Africa could use its position to influence policies that support the transition to agroecology. These include investing in agroecological markets, supporting women’s businesses, and protecting women’s rights through giving them more access to productive resources.

Agroecology is a must in the current era where climate change makes it difficult to grow enough food for everyone. Given that many African women are already involved in agriculture, it makes sense for them to lead the move to agroecology.

These steps need to be taken:

(1) Women farmers need to be connected to customers. Dedicated agroecological market infrastructure must be set up where women farmers can sell their crops. This can include markets for cooperatives and digital platforms that are designed around women farmers’ needs.

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(2) Once they’re connected to the market, the women farmers must get support to successfully compete with other businesses. Philanthropies and development agencies can support community-based and gender-sensitive processing hubs such as millers, driers and organic packaging. These are critical to support the women farmers to fully transition to agroecology.

(3) Produce needs to be certified as organic with an agroecological product label. This increases the markets that women smallholder farmers can sell to, and builds consumer trust. Organic certification projects can be set up by the government, philanthropic organisations, development agencies, non-governmental organisation and other groups interested in empowering women smallholder farmers through agroecology.

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