PRINT

Empowering Women to Build a Climate-Resilient Coffee Sector in Ethiopia

05.02.2025

This EU-funded project strengthens the role of women across Ethiopia’s coffee value chain—enhancing their access to resources and decision-making while building socio-ecological resilience to climate change in one of the country’s most vital export sectors.

Women sun drying ripened red coffee cherries on raised beds, Jimma zone.
© © AECID

Ethiopia, the birthplace of Arabica coffee, depends on coffee for both economic stability and cultural identity. Women are central to the coffee value chain—handling much of the planting, harvesting, and processing—yet they face limited access to land, leadership, and financial returns. Empowering women improves productivity, quality, and equity across the sector.

Coffee production is also increasingly vulnerable to climate change, with women disproportionately affected due to limited resources and adaptive capacity. Gender-responsive approaches—such as access to training, tools, and decision-making—are essential for building resilience in both communities and the coffee sector.

The Women, Coffee, and Climate project, implemented in the Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, promotes a gender-sensitive, climate-resilient coffee value chain. Co-funded by the EU and Spanish Cooperation (AECID), it brings together government, NGOs, and south-south expertise from Technicafe (Colombia) and Conicafe (Honduras) to ensure women benefit fully from a more sustainable coffee economy.  

Objectives

The main objective is to enhance gender equality and sustainability of Ethiopian coffee value chain through eco-efficiency, social innovation, and south – south cooperation.

Project Activities

  • Conduct interdisciplinary research on the role and contributions of women in coffee landscape

  • Establish and operationalize Community of Practice (CoP) by organizing monthly webinars

  • Develop guidelines and methodological approaches to enhance the capacity of women coffee farmers;

  • Provide training on different themes (such as business skills, coffee agronomy, post-harvest training)

  • Support Gender and Climate Fora

  • Support government “Gender strategic Plan” implementation

  • Rapid analysis on EU’s market incentives for sustainable and

  • inclusive coffee value chain

  • Exchange experiences Ethiopia, Colombia, Honduras (south–south)

Results Achieved

  • 1 Community of Practice on Women, Coffee and Climate established and active with 1 webinar per month

  • 13 knowledge products from Ethiolatin Coffee CoP webinars produced.

  • 5 research findings concluded.   

  • 13 Ethiolatin Coffee CoP webinars held, on 1 webinar /month basis.   

  • 3 issue briefs and 1 policy brief based on the research conducted by partners.

  • 1 Strategy document for enhancing knowledge and utilization of mycological resources is developed.

  • 5 exchange of experience programmes performed: Colombia, Ethiopia, Honduras, Ethiopia and Denmark.