Women and youth form a large proportion of the agricultural labour force in
Sub-Saharan Africa and play a vital role in ensuring food and nutrition security.
In Southern Africa, agriculture continues to be at the centre of local and regional
economies, representing a critical source of income and financial stability.
Agriculture contributes about 35% of the Southern African Development
Community’s (SADC), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which is approximately
13% of total export earnings (African Development Bank, 2018).
However, gender-based inequalities regarding access to and control of
productive and financial resources inhibit agricultural productivity and reduce
food security.
Oxfam in Southern Africa (Oxfam SAF) in partnership with the Food, Agriculture
and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) implemented a
project that focused on how smallholder agricultural producers, especially
women and youth, in four Oxfam focus countries – Malawi, Mozambique,
Zambia and Zimbabwe, were interacting with markets.
The study proved that despite smallholder farmers, particularly women and
youth, being the majority of agricultural sector players, they derive the least
value from their limited participation in agriculture. This is because most
smallholder farmers lack adequate access to Information and Communication
Technology for Agriculture (ICT4A), and finance and credit to fully benefit from
such technology.