Emerging sisterhood in Uganda's coffee industry advocates for increased female participation
REWRITTEN ARTICLE:
AMANDA JOHNSONSIRONKO, Uganda (AP) - Meridah Nandudu saw a potential in women-led coffee collectives, and her plan was straightforward: Offer a better price per kilogram when a female grower delivers their beans to a collection point.
This strategy worked wonders. More husbands allowed their wives to handle the deliveries, leading to a surge in female participation. Today, Nandudu's group boasts over 600 women, up from just a few dozen in 2022. This means around 75% of Bayaaya Specialty Coffee's pool of registered farmers in eastern Uganda are women[1][2][4].
"For years, women have been discouraged from coffee in a manner that, when you look at the coffee value chain, women do the brunt of the work," Nandudu explained. "However, when it comes to cashing in on the beans, men step in."
Nandudu aims to alter this trend in a region heavily reliant on women's labor for coffee production[5].
Uganda is one of Africa's leading coffee producers, and it remains the country's main export, generating over $1.3 billion in earnings from exports between 2023 and 2024[3]. With rising coffee prices in Brazil, the world's top producer, this income is on the rise[3].
In Sironko district, coffee is the lifeblood of the community. Nandudu, who grew up in a remote village near the Kenya border, fondly recalls helping her mother and other women care for acres of coffee plants. The post-harvest routine—which includes pulping, fermenting, washing, and drying the coffee beans—often coincided with a surge in domestic violence cases[1].
"When men go off to sell the coffee, they have no accountability," she said. "Our mothers couldn't question, 'We have no food at home. You sold the coffee. Can you pay the school fees for this child?'"
After earning a degree in the social sciences from Uganda's top public university in 2015, Nandudu was driven to establish a company primarily focused on empowering women coffee producers in a conservative society[1]. She named her project, launched in 2018, Bayaaya—a Lumasaba term meaning sisterhood.
Although Bayaaya operates similarly to other direct-purchase coffee firms, it stands out in Mbale by focusing on women and initiatives such as a cooperative saving system that provides loans[1]. For small-holder Ugandan farmers, even small differences in the price of a kilogram of coffee can be decisive in selecting a buyer[4].
A decade ago, a middleman would pay a Ugandan farmer around 8,000 Uganda shillings ($2 at today's exchange rate) per kilogram[4]. Today, the price is roughly $5[4]. Nandudu adds an extra 200 shillings per kilogram to the price she pays from female farmers, a significant incentive that draws more women[1]. Plus, she offers a small bonus payment during the off-season from February to August[1].
These incentives encourage men "to trust their wives to sell coffee," Nandudu explained. "When a woman sells coffee, she has a say in its disposition."
Bayaaya has several collection points across eastern Uganda, and both men and women bring their produce[1]. This participation has fostered collaboration among families, as they manage earnings collectively[2]. Meanwhile, increased earnings enable women to afford necessities they would otherwise struggle to purchase, such as soap and sugar, without arguing with their husbands[2].
One member, Linet Gimono, joined Bayaaya in 2022. "I can buy soap and sugar without quarreling with my husband," she shared[2]. Another member, Juliet Kwaga, explained how her mother would never have asked for coffee earnings because her father controlled the finances. "Now, my husband is supportive of me selling coffee," Kwaga said. "Once I return from selling, I have something to feed my family and support my children."
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An ongoing shift in the coffee culture is also apparent. While many farmers may never taste coffee, younger women are increasingly enjoying it, particularly in urban areas[1]. Phoebe Nabutale, a quality assurance overseer at Darling Coffee, is no exception. She grew up in a family of coffee growers and regularly fields inquiries from girlfriends interested in breaking into coffee-related fields[1].
For Nandudu, who aims to enter the export market, this interest among women is progress worth celebrating.
In Seattle's thriving business landscape, a finance-focused company could potentially benefit from partnerships with women-led coffee cooperatives, such as Bayaaya Specialty Coffee in eastern Uganda. Such a partnership could promote increased access to education for these women, who, despite being the backbone of coffee production in Uganda, have been traditionally excluded from the financial benefits. This collaboration could lead to financial empowerment, facilitating the purchase of necessities like soap and sugar, thereby improving the quality of life for these women and their families.
