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SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge The role of the Private Sector in Womens Economic Empowerment Perspectives from the Civil Society, Private Sector and Academia Slide 2 The private sector is a main actor for women economic empowerment The PS in many cases can open the doors to womens access to key services and leadership positions in market systems. There is an overall agreement on the business case However, the commitment is still superficial in some cases and results are limited Why? SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 3 There are some challenges Need tighter analysis of the business case for some sectors Complex issues need changes at household and community level Requires multi-sector partnerships There are risks for women to be mitigated Capacity issues SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 4 Our Panelists Sarah Zoen, Aslihan Kes Anna Bryan Anna Swaithes SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 5 Rules of this Session Town Hall discussion Each panellist makes a presentation of 10 minutes maximum Table discussion for 10 minutes where each table discusses and choses one question for the panellists 25 minutes to answer questions 5 minutes for wrapping up SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 6 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Empowering women pays. Sarah Zoen Oxfam America Slide 7 Page 7 Women cocoa farmers account for 45%+ in Cte dIvoire 25%+ in Ghana 70% agriculture in Africa 80% special crops Slide 8 Our approach: Campaigner, critical friend, convener, & knowledge broker Slide 9 Behind the scorecard Only public policies and commitments on agricultural sourcing from developing countries conditions on farms for workers, smallholders and women But the Big 10 dont run farms and few buy directly from farms Across the issues we assess: Awareness Knowledge Commitments Supply chain management Slide 10 Page 10 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Cocoa is a mans crop Slide 11 Page 11 We asked companies to make commitments to womens empowerment in the cocoa sector SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 12 Sign on to the UN Womens Empowerment Principles Conduct gender impact assessments in one key sourcing country (and 3 more) Draft action plans to address recommendations in the impact assessment Influence industry to advocate for gender equality Slide 13 Where are we now? Problem Womens issues are not just moral its economic Women cocoa farmers continue to lack access to resources, credit, land titles, markets, basic health services, cooperative membership and benefits, trainings, and High illiteracy rates Weak government policies to protect womens rights Few opportunities to become direct suppliers Women are involved anywhere from 12-18 of the 19 phases of cocoa production Lack of recognition in the household or community for their contributions Slide 14 How are we tackling these issues? Solutions Focusing on emerging good practice models and tools for the sector Influencing industry associations, like Cocoa Action Convening stakeholders from across the supply chain to promote dialogue and collaboration Engagement with companies on what progress is occurring and improvements to be made Identifying global and local influencing opportunities to make the business case (WCC, WCF, within Ministries, Private Sector) Need for mapping of cocoa projects that support women farmers to better coordinate and learn Slide 15 Conclusions where to? Stakeholder groups need to talk Manufacturers and traders/suppliers/grinders should strengthen visibility and transparency of efforts Need for government leadership Knowledge sharing Focus on living income Tracking efforts of companies gender work in the sector Slide 16 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Womens Empowerment in the Coffee Industry in PNG Anna Bryan CARE PNG Slide 17 Womens Empowerment in the Coffee Industry in PNG 90% of coffee in PNG grown by smallholders Patrilineal society means women cannot own land Bride price is paid to a womans family for marriage Women work more hours than men in coffee production & processing Women represent less than 5% of participants in extension services Women have poor access to income from coffee Rates of violence against women are extremely high SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 18 CAREs Coffee Industry Support Project Working with private sector to increase the meaningful participation of women along the coffee value chain SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Organisational Capacity Building Improving Womens Access to Extension Services Improving Family Business Management Improving Learning Slide 19 Family Business Management SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge CARE PNGs subversive gender training!!! Slide 20 Convincing the Coffee Industry to Prioritise Womens Empowerment Certification, specialty markets & sustainability Strengthening the value chain Evidence of better outcomes through empowering women Gender by stealth & getting management on board SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 21 What Results are we Seeing? Womens participation in extension services has increased to 35% Women recruited by partners as extension officers Coffee industry graduate program implemented Positive changes in household attitudes and behaviour - joint decision making and more equitable workloads. SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Linked womens cooperatives with coffee exporters Improved workplace policy such as domestic violence policy & training Slide 22 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge The role of the Private Sector in Women Economic Empowerment Aslihan Kes International Center for Research on Women Slide 23 Economically empowering women yields high returns on investment Strategic benefits for business: enhanced performance and profits Social impact Growing buy-in and investment among private sector actors Support to initiatives such as UNs Womens Empowerment Principles (WEP) Increased investment in WEE space SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Business case for womens economic empowerment Slide 24 For a woman to be economically empowered, she needs both the ability to succeed economically and the power to act on economic decisions. Women need skills and training, as well as equal access to the resources and financial institutions that allow them to compete in markets. To benefit from economic activities, women need to have the power to make decisions and control resources and profits. SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge What does it mean to be empowered economically Slide 25 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Womens roles across corporate value chains Slide 26 The majority of corporate-funded programs currently focus on expanding womens employment opportunities, training and access to finance. Corporate programs do much less to address underlying structural and social barriers to womens economic advancement. SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Current patterns in private sector investment Slide 27 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Building Blocks of Economic Empowerment for Women Slide 28 Move toward integrated approaches Work toward building a broader evidence base to advance learnin g on womens economic empowerment. Quantitative and mixed method approaches and clear metrics Building a community of practice Sharing of knowledge and experience of what does and what does not work SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Moving forward Slide 29 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge SABMiller and Womens Economic Empowerment Anna Swaithes Director, Sustainability SABMiller plc Slide 30 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Five worlds, five shared imperatives Slide 31 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge There is a business imperative and opportunity Slide 32 We have already made progress. SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 33 But it is just the beginning.. SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Slide 34 SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Society expects business to play a leading role Slide 35 And, our stakeholders are telling us we need to do more SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge Womens Empowerment: Understand who they are, what their greatest development needs are, and how their success will support our business success Partnership Slide 36 Brand and ConsumerWorkforce Value Chain Society and Advocacy SEEP Annual Conference 2015 Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge There is a strong business case for us to step up and join up - our focus on women