Sustainable farming
Practical learning in suitable crops, soil health, water stewardship, climate resilience and safe production, supported by qualified agricultural practitioners.
Agribusiness & agricultural innovation
Women growing food.
Enterprises growing futures.
Build women’s participation in agriculture through practical skills, appropriate technology, viable businesses and connections to markets. Our ambition is stronger incomes, decent work and resilient communities.
A programme for development
From growing potential
to earning opportunity.
We invite women growers, community groups, agricultural specialists, businesses and funders to help shape locally viable agricultural projects.
This programme brings together food production, women-led enterprise, agricultural technology and sustainable job creation. It extends the Foundation’s livelihoods development priorities.
Projects will be developed with participating communities and capable delivery partners. Locations, access to land and water, budgets, participant numbers and launch dates will be confirmed through feasibility work and funding agreements.
Explore sustainable livelihoodsProgramme focus
Skills, technology
and a route to market.
Each project will select the activities that fit local conditions, women’s priorities and realistic market demand.
Women-led agribusiness
Business planning, record keeping, costing, pricing, financial capability and cooperative governance. Explore suitable finance and ownership arrangements with partners.
Useful tools within reach
Digital literacy and accessible tools for weather information, farm records and market information. Assess irrigation technology, sensors and labour-saving equipment where affordable, maintainable and locally appropriate.
Value beyond the farm gate
Post-harvest handling, food safety, packaging, processing and buyer connections, with storage and logistics planned around actual demand and operating costs.
Pathways to sustainable jobs
Explore paid roles and viable self-employment in growing, nursery operations, processing, distribution and agricultural services. Mentoring and practical experience should connect to a credible income pathway.
Development that lasts
Plan for responsible water use, soil protection, reduced food loss and efficient resource use. Include women’s decision-making, accessible participation and ongoing maintenance in every project design.
Opportunities for funders
Help turn a sound idea
into a viable pilot.
South African and international partners can support feasibility studies, agricultural training, enterprise mentoring, appropriate equipment, market development and project coordination.
Discuss a costed concept notePotential pilot models
- A women-led growing initiative with technical support and identified buyers.
- A nursery or seedling enterprise serving a validated local market.
- A produce-handling or processing enterprise with food-safety and logistics support.
- A digital farm-management and market-access learning project.
These are options for co-design, not operating projects or confirmed investment offers. Site suitability, lawful land and water access, market demand and full operating costs must be assessed before launch.
Evidence & accountability
Measure livelihoods.
Learn what works.
Set baselines and realistic targets with each funded project. Training participation alone will not be reported as a job created.
Enterprise and income
Track relevant production, sales, costs, business viability and changes in participants’ income, with women’s control over earnings included in the learning approach.
Decent work
Record verified paid roles, employment duration, earnings and viable self-employment separately from training, volunteering and temporary placements.
Environmental resilience
Select practical measures for water use, soil management and food loss, alongside maintenance costs and participants’ feedback on technology.
The programme aims to contribute to food security, gender equality, decent work and responsible resource use. Results will be reported after delivery and verification.
Learning from global evidence
Technology works best
when women can use it.
FAO highlights barriers to women’s access to land, finance, skills, technology and markets. Its guidance supports inclusive agricultural development that combines useful technology with training and women’s participation in decisions.
These sources inform programme development; their inclusion does not imply a partnership or endorsement.
Grow opportunity with us.
Bring agricultural expertise, market connections, technology or funding to a locally grounded partnership.
How opportunity can grow
From a first connection
to a stronger livelihood.
A pathway for programme design, shaped with women and delivery partners. Each project sets its own activities and outcomes.
- 01
Connect
Listen to women’s priorities and build trusted relationships.
- 02
Equip
Develop relevant skills, confidence and practical capability.
- 03
Enable
Connect enterprise, technology and market opportunities.
- 04
Grow
Track income, paid work, participation and lasting value.
A South African purpose
Women’s progress.
Our shared future.
Our programme priorities connect with national ambitions for less poverty, greater equality and an inclusive economy.
Read South Africa’s National Development Plan 2030Economic participation
Skills, women-led enterprise and pathways to decent work.
Rural opportunity
Agricultural capability, viable markets and responsible resource use.
Equality and belonging
Women’s leadership, young people’s development and connected communities.
This is the Foundation’s interpretation of how its priorities relate to the NDP. It does not indicate government accreditation, funding or endorsement.