aBi & MasterCard Foundation Launches EYE-C Program to Support Women

• EYE-C is a new initiative launched by the MasterCard Foundation and the Agriculture Business Initiative (aBi)
• The program's goal is to improve the employment status of more than 300,000 young women

The Agriculture Business Initiative (aBi) in partnership with the MasterCard Foundation launched the "Empowering Young Women Entrepreneurs Stimulated by Coffee" (EYE-C) program. The program will facilitate substantial employment opportunities for more than 300,000 young women through coffee business opportunities, which will support inclusive ag transformation.

In line with the Ugandan government's ambition of reaching 20 million bags of coffee by 2030, the EYE-C program centers on developing the human capacities of young women, expanding their access to financial services, and encouraging equal market access.

Addressing a stakeholder meeting that converged representatives from government, the private sector, farmers, and development partners, the program's acting director Caroline Wamomo underlined the ability of EYE-C to revolutionize rural Uganda. She underscored its capacity to increase household incomes, empower women, and create climate-resilient communities.

"To empower young women through coffee businesses so that they can be actively engaged in the economy, earn wealth, enhance livelihoods, and be resilient" is our objective, Caroline said. She called on stakeholders to close the 20 percent of Ugandan farmers who currently receive advisory services by providing information and inputs to increase income and productivity, especially for women and young farmers.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry, and Fisheries Commissioner of Coffee Development, Dr. Gerald Kyalo, is certain that EYE-C will contribute to the advancement of Uganda's Coffee Roadmap Vision 2030. According to him, it is essential to increase coffee production by rehabilitating older, less productive trees as well as planting new ones.

“We have a huge inventory of aging coffee trees. If we can restore half of them, we can substantially increase our current output of 8.2 million bags. This scheme will not only complement that exercise but also address issues such as lack of access to finance and youth unemployment, especially among women," Gerald said.