Gender and Youth

Across Southern Africa, gender inequality and social exclusion shape daily realities, determining who eats, who leads and who survives. Solidaridad’s Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) work addresses these structural barriers head-on, with the conviction that systems can only be truly resilient when everyone has a seat at the table.

On oil palm plantations across Côte d’Ivoire, women play a vital role throughout the supply chain. Yet for decades, despite their significant contributions, they remained largely absent from the spaces where critical decisions were made. Decisions around land ownership, pricing and industry standards were often made without their input. 

Under the RECLAIM Sustainability! programme, Solidaridad partnered with women-led cooperatives in the oil palm sector to change this reality. Together with these cooperatives, a two-step transformation approach was established to strengthen women’s leadership and advocacy capabilities, while also building the economic resilience needed to sustain their influence.

Through the Oromia Dairy Farmers’ Bounty Project, 22-year-old Biruk Tesfaye more than tripled his household’s monthly income in under a year, transforming a modest family farm into a model of climate-smart, technology-driven dairy keeping. His story captures what becomes possible when young rural farmers are given the tools, training and trust to lead.