Empowering Rural Women: Assessing Outcomes in the Cassava–gari Value Chain

Gender disparity has a severe and long-term consequence on women especially in developing African countries such as Ghana. The socio-economic effect of gender inequality is harsher on rural women dwellers in Ghana due to lack of access to business and livelihood empowering opportunities. One way to deal with the above and improve the economic wellbeing of rural women dwellers is to create economic opportunities from which they can earn a good income. In Ghana, rural women could participate in the entire value chain of food crops such as cassava as they already participate in its cultivation (upstream activities of the supply chain). The current study adopts the approach of literature review on cassava and gari production in Ghana; and conducts interviews and observations on gari processing in Ghana to share useful lessons on how to deal with socio-economic effect of gender disparity among rural women dwellers. This study interviewed women in two gari processing enclaves in the country to provide useful insight on how women wellbeing could be enhanced. A total of 17 women entrepreneurs, 33 female workers and 7 farmers from 10 communities were interviewed and observed. Firstly, this study provides an understanding of the cassava-gari (roasted fermented cassava in a form of tiny grains) value chain, and the role rural women entrepreneurs can play to enrich their livelihood. Secondly, the study highlights the key activities of gari processing by women in rural Ghana, the challenges faced, and provides valuable conclusions on how to bridge the gender gap through women’s participation in an enhanced cassava-gari value chain. Lastly, two important issues are highlighted with respect to rural women’s participation in an enhanced gari value chain: (1) the opportunity for affordable nutrition through a common local farm produce, and (2) the economic livelihood of rural women. While rural women possess enough capacity to participate meaningfully in the value chain, there are still constraints that can be dealt with by any enterprise that seeks to venture into large-scale commercial fortified gari production. Such ventures, be it a social (businesses for social good) or commercial (profit centered businesses) enterprise, will enhance access to affordable nutrition as well as economic empowerment.