Investing in livestock, empowering women in post Covid-19 food systems
Everything in a cow is useful
Igbo idiom
There is a direct correlation between livestock and land that is at the heart of women’s marginalization from benefiting from livestock production.
Due to the predominance of patriarchal norms across most African societies, women are often denied access to, or ownership of land, cattle, and other valuable economic resources. In rural settings, especially, this leaves them with few options to earn a decent livelihood, leaving them at the mercy of their husbands, or male relatives.
When women’s innate creativity and entrepreneurial capacities are denied expression in this way, it not only leaves them without the opportunity to earn an income and support their families, but can damage their mental health as well.
In 2014, African heads of state signed the The Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods, which contains concrete targets for accelerating the full participation of women and young people in agriculture-based livelihoods.
Livestock keeping offers vast untapped opportunities for African women to earn a decent livelihood, and generate wealth. For women to benefit, however, will require breaking down policies that promote unequal but cultural practices on inheritance, and ownership of land, property, and other productive resources. Numerous studies have highlighted the crucial role that African women play as pillars of agriculture. Supporting women’s investments in livestock is one concrete way that governments, development agencies, and other actors can “put their money where their mouth is,” and empower women to take charge of their lives, while also securing local food systems and economies.
But creating transformative agricultural systems also requires a change in women’s own attitudes to food production, work, and wealth creation. Women need to view food production and livestock keeping as not only a way to feed their families, but also as a means to create a viable business that can provide a stable source of income to withstand future shocks.
Sinazo Jili, works with the Old Mutual group in South Africa, and also runs a small- scale farm. Worried about her family’s financial future in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, she says that while she makes an income from crop production, she would like to invest her money in something as stable as livestock.
“As a farmer, I've realised that livestock could be a great investment because of the stability it gives. I do not have the time to start livestock farming, neither do I have the know-how, but with parts of my savings, I want to invest in livestock, or a part of the livestock value chain,” she explains.
Sinazo has researched investment options in the in livestock sector, and has identified at least three avenues:
Investing in livestock farm assets: This model of investment is also called crowd-farming. It allows any individual to own cattle, or a share in cattle, which yields short- and long-term returns. These returns can be monthly payments which can help secure household income, and ultimately the livelihood and food economy of a household or individual.
Investing in beef production: Local beef production by small-scale farmers, as well as larger to enterprises, contributes an estimated ZAR 213 million (approximately USD 12.5 million) to the South African economy. Some of the local breeds that are highly recommended for beef production are Nguni, Drakensberger, Brahman varieties.
Investing in the livestock value chain: Adding value through developing a range of livestock products is another viable way for securing an investment. These can vary from manufacturing of leather bags, to luxury mats, and other high-end leather items.
The Covid-19 pandemic has taught us the importance of developing a more sustainable African Food System that can help ensure our food security, and ultimately the wealth of our families and countries. Securing women’s land tenure, and encouraging their participation in livestock value chains, is one of the surest ways of building resilient food systems on the continent for the present, and future generations.
Written by Nomfundo Zondi
This article is part of Covid-19 Food/Future, an initiative under TMG ThinkTank for Sustainability’s SEWOH Lab project (https://www.tmg-thinktank.com/sewoh-lab). It aims at providing a unique and direct insight into the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on national and local food systems. Also follow @CovidFoodFuture, our Video Diaries From Nairobi, and @TMG_think on Twitter. Funding for this initiative is provided by BMZ, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
