Indonesia
- KSU Jatirogo is a multipurpose cooperative dealing with organic coconut sap sugar and caters to international as well as domestic markets. It engages a 100% female workforce of coconut farmers, comprising 1731 women of whom 119 are heads of households (their husbands are dead or have abandoned them) and hence are members of the cooperative. KSU Jatirogo enabled women from coconut farming communities to shift from producing 'batok' and rough brown sugar for local markets to organic coconut sap sugar for export.
- Karya Masyarakat Mandiri (KMM) a subsidiary of Dompet Dhuafa, has organised a women-led Sinar Abadi Cooperative of marginalized mussel strippers, comprising 200 small producers, 45% of whom are women. It has become the local partner in governance of green mussel value chain interventions. Wasti, the chairperson of this cooperative, has helped asset-less mussel strippers to become owners of bagans- the means of production for mussels. KMM has also helped the cooperative to process and trade green mussels in the local market. This economic activity has, in the Islamic context, transformed Wasti, and the women she leads, from being receivers of zakat (alms) to becoming givers of zakat. It has made women householders owners of productive assets of 3-5 bagans each. Their overall household income has increased from USD 42-64 to USD 205-410, above the provincial minimum wage of USD163.
Vietnam
- Dragon Vietnam Investment has enabled indigenous women to diversify from growing corn to sustainably cultivating ginger and gac (a crop rich in Vitamin A and used as an ingredient by pharmaceutical companies), which require less land and give 3-5 times more income. It engages 2000 smallholder producers, 1000 of them being women. By producing fresh and processed ginger and gac, they now earn 5-10 times more as compared to their income from corn. Dragon buys all their produce, which is sold in the domestic as well as international markets, at flexible market price with an assured minimum purchase price. Ly Thi Dung is one such indigenous woman, who is part of an Interest Group, that Dragon organized among the H'mong people of Vietnam, to export fresh and processed ginger carrying the Global GAP Standard.
- Hiep Khanh Tea Joint Stock Company (HITEACO) engages 1000 households, 600 of them being women. It exports tea to Middle East and Europe. HITEACO established tea processing facilities in Son La province, and engaged women and men as household partners in their value chain. They provided an initial incentive package of seedlings and fertilizers, covering 70% of the inputs' requirement. The company provides regular technical assistance to sustain the quality of the tea products. It has also introduced bio-fertilizers and ensures strict adherence to non use of chemical fertilizers. This has resulted in increased production by the tea farmers who now have an assured buyer of their produce in HITEACO.
- Imelda, Juanita, Wasti, Pin and Dung are examples of grassroots women in Southeast Asia who have been empowered through partnerships with social enterprises and inclusive businesses working with civil society organizations in various value chain and development interventions. These are but few of the transformational partnerships in agricultural value chains that have had a significant impact on small scale producers, especially women.
Thailand
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