Sustainable Agriculture Guatemala Project #18717

Seeds and Skills for Women to Grow Vegetables

by Seed Programs International

Project Report | Jan 10, 2024
Empowering women and strengthening communities, one garden plot at a time

By Georgia Beasley | Project Leader

Women prepping a garden in Uganda

At SPI, we know that women in rural communities play vital roles in agricultural production. Yet, their contributions often go unseen, undervalued, and limited by traditional gender roles. Vegetable-growing programs are breaking down these barriers, enabling women to become key players in food security and income generation.

Take Fatima*, for example, a woman who is a part of the Birhan women’s group in southern Ethiopia, with our local partner, Grow East Africa. Fatima receives training in sustainable practices, seed varieties, and market access. She joins the women’s group weekly, where they have a large plot of land where they plant a vibrant tapestry of crops, from tomatoes and eggplant to okra and quinoa. They grow food collectively, working side by side, learning and sharing with one another, and later sharing the profits from their hard work. She is able to garner empowerment from participation with the cooperative, and feeds her family nutritious meals, sells surplus produce for income, and gains respect and recognition in her community.

The benefits extend far beyond the vegetable garden. Women participating in these programs gain:

Increased food security: Access to diverse vegetables improves family nutrition and reduces reliance on staple crops prone to drought.
Economic empowerment: Selling produce generates income, providing women with financial independence and decision-making power.
Skill development: Training in agriculture, business management, and financial literacy equips women for long-term success.
Social status: Leading initiatives and achieving financial goals boosts women’s self-confidence and breaks down gender stereotypes.
Community strengthening: Shared learning and collaboration foster a sense of solidarity and support among women farmers.

Thanks to supporters like you, we are able to work with women’s groups throughout countries in Africa and Latin America to uplift women and their communities. From Ethiopia, Senegal, South Sudan, Uganda, and Guatemala, your support is transforming lives and landscapes.

We are looking forward to another season of working with women farmers. Please stay tuned as we begin our planning process for 2024 programs!

Fatima and others with their pepper plants

Women with small harvests, Senegal

Links:

Partner Taaru Askan in Senegal, hear directly from the women!

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Sep 13, 2023
Supporting women's groups around the world

By Georgia Beasley | Project Leader

Women in Kenya with permaculture gardens

At Seed Programs International, we know that empowering women transforms communities. According to multiple studies, including those published by the UN, for every dollar a woman makes, 90% goes back into the community, in comparison to only 30-40% for men. This means more money reinvested into health, education, and other household-level needs that improve livelihood indicators. This is why one of our primary programmatic focus is supporting women groups in developing agricultural and market programs around the world.

What does that look like? Well, let's take a look at a few of our partners.

In central Senegal, we work with Taaru Askan and Tostan International to support over 120 women from 4 villages in learning regenerative and sustainable agriculture techniques to help their communities transition from heavy-pesticide, commercial style farming to organic farming that is good for longterm soil health, stabilizing food security for years to come. Alongside this transition comes marketing and business support to help the women enter their excess, organic produce into local markets to increase their incomes, breaking the cycle of poverty whilst spreading a demand for organic produce in the region. Check out the video below to see a testimonial from Awa Ba, a participant in this year's training.

Farther East in Kenya, we are supporting a grassroots organization and women's cooperative called Shishaba, in Butere, Eastern Kenya. With Shishaba, we are supporting 100 women in permaulture training for increased food production yearround, despite changing climate patterns that are disrupting normal planting seasons and impacting communities' ability to feed themselves. Supporting 100 women means we are directly impacting around 600 people, with a further ripple effect throughout their entire communities. See the photos below of permaculture training in action!

In Guatemala, we work with Wellkind to support women-led community initiatives with the Mayan indigenous communities surrounding Lake Atitlan. While these trainings support entire families, including male members, all projects are led by women, leading to a multiplier effect of empowerment, gender equality, and increased food security in areas where diets are limited, insufficient, and oftentimes include little to no vegetables. Together, we're changing that.

As this year's season is wrapping up, we're celebrating all 10 women-based organizations and initiatives we are supporting this year. We hope you'll celebrate with us. Next week, GlobalGiving is having their annual September Little x Little Campaign!

From Monday, September 18 through Friday, September 22, GlobalGiving is matching all donations up to $50 at 50%! This is a great opportunity to make your donation dollars go even further.

Your donation will ensure we can help more women feed their families, break the cycle of poverty, and build equitable food systems that are good for people and the planet. Share with your friends to make an even bigger impact!

Guatemalan women prepare seedlings for sale

Links:

Regenerative Agriculture in Senegal, women speak out!

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May 24, 2023
Growing gardens in rural South Sudan

By Georgia Beasley | Project Leader

Young teen mothers prepping garden beds

Hi gardeners!

Across East Africa the first growing season of the year is well underway. In South Sudan specifically, vegetable seeds were recently sewn in nurseries and then transplanted into gardens. We are happy to report that gardens are underway!

In South Sudan, we are partnering with Women Relief Aid, a grassroots, women-led NGO based in Juba, that provides humanitarian assistance and community development throghout underserved communities in the country.

In Torit, Eastern Equatoria State, we are supporting community-wide food security via 'community club gardens,' ran and managed by young people in rural households. These community club gardens support more than just vegetable production and food security for those at-risk of economic, conflict, and environmental-related shocks: they strengthen community and intercommunal resource sharing, promote solidarity, and create a learning network for climate-smart agricutlrual practices.

In this project, 100 club members are receiving an intensive training of vegetable production, climate-smart agriculture practices, and crop diversification. Preference for training participation is based upon need, and the majority of our trainees are at-risk teenage mothers.

These young women have been managing the community club gardens throughout Torit county. Community members receive guidance and training from the trained club members, making these gardens a hub for community learning and knowledge sharing.

Through this program, a ripple effect of increased vegetable production will spread across these communities.

As the growing season continues, training progresses, and harvests begin, we can’t wait to share more progress updates with you!

Thank you for supporting projects like this one. Remember - East Africa is experiencing its worst drought in 40 years, making garden projects all the more important. At SPI, we believe that we all deserve to have enough food on our tables to feed our loved ones.

Happy gardening,
the SPI team

Trainees in the nursery working hard!

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