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Women's Economic Empowerment Through Agricultural Value Chain Enhancement (WEAVE)

Viet Nam
2016
2020
Keywords
Business development; Market access; Education (vocational); Social services; Socia

Project description

WEAVE aims to increase the social and economic empowerment of women in the pork, cinnamon and banana agricultural value chains. This is achieved by promoting equality between women and men within households and producer groups, strengthening female and male producers� skills and bargaining power, and working with businesses and government decision-makers to improve the policy environment to support producers.

Primary thematic area

Secondary thematic areas

Trade & access to markets

Skills training; Regulatory & legal frameworks; Social reproductive labour

Project evaluation

Evaluation source

Independent evaluation (Chi Pham and Ngoc Pham), December 2018, WEAVE Project Mid-term Review

Evaluation methodology

Mixed method. The Mid-term Review applied a mixed-methods approach of qualitative and quantitative data collection methods:
� Qualitative data collected by semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and a cohort study of
30 cases
� Quantitative data collected through a WEA-I household survey (Annex 1 provides a description of the WEA-I calculation method)
� Secondary data consolidated from relevant project documents, MEL and baseline report

Programme targets

- Outcome 1: Women have the decision-making influence, capacity, confidence and support to benefit from increasing social and economic opportunities.
- Outcome 2: Women gain increasing benefits through better organisation, enhanced value chain and market linkages.
- Outcome 3: The key target development programs for mountainous areas (NTP-SPR 135 and 30A) and agriculture extension policies (Decree 02 and/or guiding Circular) are gender sensitized and operational, ensuring gender equality focus in the overall local development agenda, sector planning and resource allocation, and enabling environment for women inclusive value chains.

Results achieved

DFAT Vietnam Aid Program Performance Report 2018-19: WEAVE, the precursor (and now complementary) investment for women�s economic empowerment in the north-west of Vietnam, commissioned a mid-term review in 2018-19. The review found that WEAVE was making good progress in achieving two of its three original objectives and had a pronounced impact on supporting women�s household-level decision making and agency across the three provincial sites. However, only 35 per cent of households reported an increase in income over the implementation period, which was attributed to a significant drop in the market price for target commodities (banana and pork), withdrawal of a key private sector actor from the cinnamon value chain, and the economic behaviour of farmers. To get this objective back on track, WEAVE is implementing recommendations from the mid-term review, including diversifying target markets and establishing community-based business models. WEAVE�s three implementing partners (Care, Oxfam and SNV) are now three of the 46 partners under GREAT; lessons learned from WEAVE will inform the implementation of their activities under GREAT.



As of June 2017: WEAVE had supported 1516 farmers (68% women) to form 39 producer groups, providing men and women with a forum to discuss gender equality issues at the household level and receive training on farming techniques, business planning, and financial literacy. Village Saving and Loan Associations were established and are providing farmers with access to loan finance for expanding farming area, health care services or education.

Targets met?

- Outcome 1: Women have the decision-making influence, capacity, confidence and support to benefit from increasing social and economic opportunities.
- Outcome 2: Women gain increasing benefits through better organisation, enhanced value chain and market linkages.
- Outcome 3: The key target development programs for mountainous areas (NTP-SPR 135 and 30A) and agriculture extension policies (Decree 02 and/or guiding Circular) are gender sensitized and operational, ensuring gender equality focus in the overall local development agenda, sector planning and resource allocation, and enabling environment for women inclusive value chains.

2023

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