Women Lead the Way

Recognizing the vital role of women in agriculture this International Women’s Day

Today is International Women’s Day – and it’s high time that women around the world get the recognition they deserve.

Around 70% of agricultural work is done by women, according to FAO figures. Yet a recent TWIN report finds that women’s crucial role in farming is often unrecognized, unpaid and invisible. Men own most of the land and take responsibility for transporting crops to market, and subsequently they retain much of the control over household income.

Recognizing and investing in women farmers is good for development. The report found that investing in programs targeted at women smallholders can have a positive impact on education, health and food security.

At Fairtrade many women are catalysts for change in many of their communities. One in four Fairtrade producers is a woman, and on plantations this figure is even higher, with women making up 47 percent of hired workers in Fairtrade. Women are active in all aspects of Fairtrade, from farming to processing, and in some cases, management of producer organizations and cooperatives.

We’ll be featuring stories of three women taking on a leadership role in their own way, and providing powerful examples to others. Read Alida Strauss’ story below.

A modest, but smart young woman, Alida left her parent’s remote rooibos farm to attend school in Cape Town, 400 kilometres away. When she returned, the Heiveld cooperative had recently formed, enabling black farmers to unite in a cooperative for the first time. She successfully applied for the job of bookkeeper for the cooperative in 2002, and has worked there ever since, getting promoted to General Manager in 2010.

From small beginnings with just 14 members and very little technical knowledge or marketing savvy, Heiveld has grown to 64, and exports organic rooibos tea around the world.

Behind Alida’s unassuming demeanor lies a passion for her work and her community, and a determination to pass this on to young people. She is glad she had the opportunity to return, and wants other young people to do the same.

“At Heiveld, we try to do things to keep people here, to make it exciting for them and give them the self-confidence to believe in themselves,” says Alida.

Her message to the young people in her village: “Go get your education, but come back and do something for your community”.

Alida holds talks at the local school, and invites teachers to bring their students on excursions to the cooperative. Heiveld uses a portion of the Fairtrade Premium to enable young people to go to university in Cape Town with the hope that they will bring their new knowledge back to the community.

The job is not without its challenges, but Alida is proud of what she and others in the cooperative have achieved, and encourages others to feel the same.

“I’ve learned a lot and I am still learning,” she explains. “But it’s our job to educate people and tell them, ‘you have a right to have your say: it’s your cooperative. Be proud of what’s yours.‘”