Assessment of Specific Roles that Women Play in Tea Production on the Mambilla Plateau

Abstract

This study assesses the specific roles that women play in tea production on the Mambilla Plateau, with the aim of examining their contributions to sustainable tea production under changing climatic conditions. The specific objectives are to identify the roles performed by women along the tea value chain, examine the extent of their participation relative to men, and assess the structural constraints limiting women’s involvement in value addition and decisionmaking. The study is anchored on gender and sustainable livelihood theories and adopts a mixed-method research design. Quantitative data are collected through household surveys administered to tea farmers, while qualitative data are generated through in-depth interviews with women tea farmers and key stakeholders in the tea sector. Supplementary climatic data are also utilised. Findings show that women play dominant roles in core agronomic and postharvest activities such as planting, fertilizer application, harvesting, and storage, often equalling or surpassing male participation. However, women remain marginal in marketing, processing, leadership, and climate adaptation planning. The study concludes that women are indispensable to tea husbandry on the Mambilla Plateau, providing the labour and experiential knowledge that sustain productivity and quality, yet face persistent structural barriers in higher-value segments of the tea value chain. The study recommends reserving at least 30% of leadership positions in tea growers’ cooperatives for women, expanding gender-responsive extension services, and strengthening women’s access to market-oriented and climate-smart production training