Abstract:
Embracing gender responsiveness in agricultural cooperatives is crucial for advancing women's rights and fostering inclusive growth. Despite various measures, women's participation in Kenyan coffee cooperatives has historically remained low, impeding broader development. The purpose of the study was to determine the gender-based barriers to women participation, gender responsiveness of initiatives and their influence on women participation in coffee cooperatives in Kiambu County. The study's specific objectives were to identify the gender-based barriers to women participation in coffee cooperative, to evaluate gender responsiveness of initiatives in the coffee sector and to examine trends in women participation in coffee cooperatives. The study was guided by the Gender and Development theory and a descriptive research design. The target population comprised Cooperative Members, Chairpersons of Management Boards, Coffee Managers and Cooperative Officers. A sample size of 398 participants was selected using simple random sampling from members and purposive techniques from other respondents. Data collection involved Key Informant Interviews with Cooperative Officers, In-Depth Interviews with Chairpersons of Management Board and Coffee Managers and questionnaires for Cooperative Members. The data collection instruments were pilot-tested in Kabete Sub-County, yielding a Cronbach's alpha of 0.887, indicating high reliability. Face and content validity were ensured. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed key gender-based barriers persist, especially in access to farm inputs, lack of recognition of women's contributions and limited access to leadership roles. Also, while initiatives implemented were gender responsive, the Coffee bill, 2023 was found to have the lowest notable improvements in cultural norms and power dynamics, there was still a lack of potential for gender responsiveness, indicating limited capacity to foster inclusivity. Lastly, there was a positive trend in women’s participation over the last two years, the coffee sector, especially in decision-making and membership. The study concluded that; gender-based barriers should be addressed through targeted interventions such as creating training programs, continued implementation of initiatives was essential for further removing barriers and that the existing initiatives had positively influenced women participation. The study recommended further investigation be conducted to uncover the underlying causes of these barriers, revisions to the Coffee bill, 2023 to better promote gender inclusive practices in coffee sector and continuous assessment of gender responsive initiatives to ensure effectiveness and progress towards greater gender inclusivity in coffee cooperatives. The study recommended further area of study on the impact of internal, external and governmental programs on women’s participation in coffee cooperatives. Additional studies should also explore gender-based barriers and initiatives in other cooperative types, such as workers’ and consumer cooperatives.
