Poster for the ‘Market-Oriented Smallholder Development: IPMS Experience-Sharing Workshop,’ Addis Ababa, 2-3 June 2011

1. Women in fruit and vegetable value
chain development
Background
• Women are major players in crop production including vegetables and fruits, however they have limited
control over income from the sale of these crops
• In most cases, men have land entitlement, hence women have limited access to resources and income
• To benefit women from crop value chain development, IPMS targeted women in its input supply
interventions specifically in
– Fruit seedling production and marketing
– Vegetable seed/seedling production and marketing
Key interventions
Target and support women and landless
youths in:
• Skills and knowledge provision on nursery
management including grafting
• Input supply linkage for
– Mother tree establishment for scion
production
– Nursery tools supply
• Engage regulatory body for certification of
seed/seedling
• Market linkages
Lessons learned and challenges
• Gender sensitive commodity value chain development approach helps women to participate in the
value chain
• Improved fruit and vegetable seedling production is appropriate for women and the landless
• Provision of knowledge and skills in seedling and seed production can move women from labour
contributors to major value chain actors
• Linking women to input and output actors increases the sustainability of fruit and vegetable value
chains
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