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Fairtrade addresses gender equality

Striving for gender equality is integrated in all facets of our work—from standards to programs and research. Trade cannot be fair unless it includes people of all genders.

female producer
Female producer

In spite of generations fighting against it, gender inequality remains a massive obstacle and is still very much engrained in society today.

For example, though women make up the majority of people producing food, they rarely receive their share of the benefits of their hard labour.

Women in agricultural communities often:

  • Don’t have control of the money they earn
  • Don’t own land or crops
  • Have less access to education, training or supplies
  • Are discriminated against when applying for credit

Our gender approach supports farming organisations in tackling the unequal power relationships that hold women back in the workplace and in society.

  • 70 %
    of people who live in extreme poverty (living on less than $2.15 a day) are women.
  • ~1/4
    of Fairtrade producers are women
Gender Equality

Fast Facts

Here are some fast facts about gender equality across the world

How Fairtrade addresses gender inequality

  • Strong standards

  • Producer support programmes

  • Premium use

  • Market access

  • Research and data

"Now I say to myself I can do anything I want. I've learned to believe in myself and believe that I will be able to make it”. Zoila Coto (second from left), member of El Sunza Cooperative. She has been part of CLAC's women's school of leadership.

Women in Coffee Project

Fairtrade’s Growing Women in Coffee project encouraged the transfer of coffee bushes to women coffee farmers in Kenya, enabling them to earn an independent income for the first time. 300 women from Kabngetuny Cooperative received training on good agricultural practices, and have increased the yield and quality of their coffee as a result. They also have benefitted from the construction of ‘green energy’ biogas cook stoves for their homes, reducing exposure to smoke and the time they spend collecting firewood. Now they have launched their own women’s label coffee: Zawadi coffee, which is Swahili for “gift”. “If a woman is empowered, then the house will also be empowered, economically and socially” says Elizabeth, member of Kabngetuny coffee cooperative.
Woman standing

We are seeing incremental improvement, but there is much more work to do to bring about true gender equality.

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