Women-led business and value chain development; a case study in Tajikistan

Investments in smallholder goat development and related value chains are effective means to reduce poverty and increase the incomes of men and women from resource-poor households. They are also effective channels to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in remote mountainous areas.

In Tajikistan, goat producers sell unprocessed fibre to traders or local processors – usually poor rural women – who then make cheap, low-quality products that sell for low prices. In doing so, women generate a meagre income that does little to reduce poverty and change the traditional and inequitable gender roles at home and in the community. To empower women processors through business opportunities and increased income, they need access to processing skills, technologies, information and marketing know-how to make high-end yarn or products that can compete in international markets.