Women are crucial for the development of the sesame value chain in Togo

Mrs. Akossia Kalibou is a skilled processor and craftswoman hailing from Kanté in northern Togo. In 2016, Akossia stumbled upon an exciting business opportunity while attending a fair in the capital, Lomé. At the fair, she discovered sesame oil and was instantly fascinated by its potential. She purchased half a liter of oil and inquired about the manufacturing process from the exhibitor.

Once back home, Mrs. Kalibou enlisted the help of a local tool maker to create a prototype of an extraction machine. And thus, the SOKLY brand was born. Today, Mrs. Kalibou produces an array of products including sesame oil, cookies, chips, and energy bars made from sesame seeds. She distributes her products to customers in Lomé and exports them to Gabon. Mrs. Kalibou’s entrepreneurial spirit and dedication have helped her turn her business into a success story.

While Togo has the necessary human and natural resources to develop its sesame processing sector, there are significant gender gaps that need to be addressed. Encouraging and enabling more women like Mrs. Kalibou to participate in the sector is a necessary condition for the growth of the sector and to make it more competitive.

The ICR Facility is currently working with Togo’s Ministry of Investment Promotion and Ministry Agriculture of Togo to improve women’s participation in the sesame value chain. As a part of this intervention, more than fifty interviews were conducted from September 2022 to January 2023 to evaluate the business environment in the sector, with a particular focus on the Savanes and Kara regions. The results will provide key data on the sector which will help Togo’s policymakers target their action to support the participation of women in the sesame sector.

Women’s Potential Remains Untapped

Preliminary findings from the assessment suggest that women are currently undervalued in the agricultural sector but have the potential to play a more significant role in its development. Although women are involved in all aspects of the value chain as producers, aggregators, traders, and processors, only 5% of the businesses surveyed were women-led, managed, or represented.

In the sesame value chain, women are often relegated to less visible roles, yet they remain indispensable to the sector’s success. Their involvement in activities such as drying, packaging, processing, and sales underscores their essential contributions to the sector.  When examining the various links in the sesame value chain, our field research shows that women are more represented in areas beyond production. These include drying, packaging (bagging), processing into finished products, and sales, including exports.

Greater recognition and inclusion of women in the sesame sector are crucial for driving success and ensuring sustainability in the sector. International experience has shown that when women are given better access to resources and training, they can significantly improve productivity and overall performance in agriculture. In fact, studies have found that when women are given the same resources and opportunities as men, they can increase their yields by up to 30%, which can result in a significant boost in household income and food security.

The need to tackle land ownership barriers

Women’s limited access to land ownership remains a significant barrier to their full participation in the sector. Togo has taken a major stride towards gender equality with the introduction of the new land code in 2018. This landmark legislation ensures that women have equal access to land.

The new land code was designed to eliminate any ambiguity in customary and modern laws that had previously discriminated against women. However, gaps in implementation persist, particularly in rural areas. Women continue to face difficulties in purchasing land, as many landowners are unwilling to sell to them. Women also often encounter challenges to inheriting land, as they are frequently discriminated compared to male relatives.

Addressing these issues require both the involvement of national and local authorities to improve the enforcement of the new regulatory framework, as well as campaigns to shift cultural attitudes towards gender equality in land ownership.