A Value Chain Analysis of the Cashew Sector - AGOA Export Toolkit

2.5 Gender Aspects and the Poverty Relevance
of Cashew Processing
Poverty in Ghana is concentrated in rural areas and impacts
women more severely than men. Th e poverty rate for northern
savannah areas is signifi cantly higher than the national
average. Th e Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions
are generally the poorest in Ghana, followed by the Volta Region
(GLSS, 2006). Both the incidence and depth of poverty
are found to be greater in the rural savannah than in any other
area. Th e proportion of Ghanaians described as being “poor”
decreased to 28.5% in 2005/06 from 39.5% in 1998/1999.
Th ose considered “extremely poor” declined to 18.2% from
26.8%. All localities in Ghana with the exception of Greater
Accra and the Upper West Region have experienced a decline
in poverty.
Th e Poverty Impact Assessment conducted by GTZ revealed
that women (heads of households, single and married), show
signifi cant interest in working in existing cashew processing
companies. Based on the discussions held with women actually
working in processing companies, it seems that this type
of employment is preferred to the hard labour associated with
cashew production and other agricultural activities. Consequently,
processing jobs are a favoured alternative way of earning
income for women in rural communities.
There is no apparent division of labour based on gender in
cashew production, apart from regarding thinning and pruning,
which are almost always done by men. Activities such as
weeding, clearing, planting and sowing are undertaken by both
women and men, albeit in diff erent proportions. In some
cashew producing communities, women make juice and alcohol
from cashew apples, and are therefore highly involved in the
processing of apples and nuts at the household level. Furthermore,
70% of the labour force involved in processing activities
is comprised of women (CDP, 2009c), and many women participate
in the selling of raw nuts at marketing centres. How ever,
large traders/exporters and their agents generally tend to be men.
In the northern part of the country, some farmers use income
gained from cashew production to establish livestock enterprises
(PPMED, 2007). While there is a progressive trend towards
more inclusion of perennial tree crops (cocoa, citrus,
rubber, cashew, mango) in farming systems, most farm-based
households maintain traditional multiple sources of income -
each has on average 7-8 income sources (PPMED, 2007).
Th is strategy aims to reduce economic and production risks
by allowing for agricultural seasonality and increased use of
labour during the course of the year. However, it usually involves
limited labour productivity for those households in the
poor and medium categories, and also restricts the labour and
capital investments needed for intensive commercial agriculture
and specialisation (PPMED, 2007).
Cashew farming can lead to increased employment opportunities
for women in rural areas (processing companies), and
generate income for vulnerable smallholder farmers and women.
All these opportunities will ultimately result in an improvement
in rural living conditions, and hence contribute to poverty
reduction.
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