Supporting Women to Gain Executive Positions – Maize Partnership , Nigeria
Women were previously excluded from executive positions in the Ogbomoso Ise Oluwani Cooperative in Nigeria . This issue was raised while 2SCALE carried out gender mapping with the maize cooperative members . The situation had an impact on women ’ s access to inputs , as decisions pertaining to this access are made during executive meetings . Therefore , 2SCALE organized meetings with executive members of the cooperative to sensitize them to the challenge brought up by women . The executives then decided that a quota of three out of 11 seats of the executive council would be reserved for women .
2SCALE participated as an observer during the first election with women as candidates . With the new council in place , women had a chance to voice their concerns regarding access to inputs . As an immediate outcome , the newly elected bureau , with three women members , decided to register 200 women members ( out of 600 ) to receive access to inputs with the cooperative ’ s support . Although men ’ s buy-in was challenging to obtain in the beginning , women ’ s access to executive positions was later seen as an opportunity , since many organizations and value chain actors value working with organizations that pay attention to gender equity . Financial institutions also see women as credible business partners and regarded women on the central executive council positively .
4.5 Brokering and Networking
2SCALE fosters linkages among cluster actors and between cluster actors and value chain supporters , such as banks , research centers , extension services , or public institutions , by inviting them to participate in existing platforms , creating new platforms , and ensuring women are represented and participate . Creating these links is crucial , as it allows improved communication , transparency , and trust among cluster actors for smoother functioning of the cluster and improved efficiency of the value chain . It also improves cluster actors ’ ability to advocate for gendersensitive service provision from chain supporters .
How Organizing and Linking Cluster Actors Improves Performance of the Value Chain – Parboiled Rice Partnership , Benin
In Benin , parboiled rice consumption is on the rise : production of paddy rice has increased by 174 %, from 54,901 tons in 2001 to 150,000 tons in 2011 . In 2012 , 2SCALE supported the emergence of rice agribusiness clusters in three areas : Gogounou , Glazoué , and Lalo . They comprise 21 farmer organizations , representing over 8,500 smallholder rice farmers ( 52 % female ) and 365 local rice processors – all women . The clusters have set up an inventory warehouse system , with financial arrangements between traders , farmers , and processors . There is a good relationship between financial services and cluster actors , transparency in units of measurement used , and better negotiated prices .
Before 2SCALE ’ s interventions , the situation was very different . Smallholder rice farmers were poorly organized . Women processing paddy into parboiled rice were organized in cooperatives that had ad hoc business relationships with farmers . Both paddy production and
A young woman feeds her rabbits after participating in a 2SCALE training in Benin . Demand for rabbit meat is booming in the country ’ s urban areas . This partnership provides jobs for young breeders , retailers , and female restaurant owners .
quality were suboptimal , as were the quantity and quality of parboiled rice . Access to market was limited . Parboiled rice was not well-known as a product , the organization of sales was erratic , and conflicts occurred due to lack of transparency regarding units of measurement and prices . Nevertheless , the women processors wished to sell more and better quality parboiled rice , not only in Benin but also in neighboring Nigeria . They emerged as drivers of a scaling up process , but they did not know how to make it happen . That is where 2SCALE came in , with the support of other value chain supporters .
Coaches of BSSs first built capacities of the cluster actors in response to the business issues that surfaced . Coaching on “ negotiation and contracting ,” for example , helped strengthen the relationships among actors , improved their skills to negotiate , and led to formal contracts between processors and farmers or their organizations . The quality and quantity of paddy increased as farmers obtained credits from the women processors and were able to purchase inputs , such as good variety seeds and fertilizer . In turn , traders pre-financed the production of parboiled rice for the processors after 2SCALE brokered linkages between these actors . Another achievement of this brokering intervention , along with close coaching on the business relationship , was the agreement on a uniform unit of measurement . But cluster actors also needed to improve their skills in market canvassing and brand development to expand their knowledge on markets and to improve the penetration of parboiled rice in target markets . Therefore , 2SCALE
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