ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study on the Zambian operations of Cargill, a multinational corporation that has been actively linking women and private sector agribusiness in Zambia. The company’s approaches have elements of corporate social responsibility (CSR), but they go further in creating shared value (CSV) and developing win–win situations both for the company and for the women. The company’s strategies are largely consistent with human rights-based approaches and contribute to enhancing women’s rights and women’s economic empowerment. By promoting women’s clubs for small-scale cotton farmers, Cargill supports women with: training in farming techniques; advice on access to credit; encouragement to diversify; and strategies for strengthening of their organization and leadership skills. The women produce more and better cotton and improve their incomes; the company benefits from having reliable supplies of cotton.
