Coffee Production and Women's Empowerment in Colombia

This article analyzes the little understood gendered relations and issues related to women's empowerment in Colombian family coffee farms. We used multiple qualitative methods of inquiry to assess women coffee producers' empowerment and agency within both economic and political spheres. Despite their traditional participation in domestic work and their subordinate position in coffee production, we demonstrate that a significant percentage of women coffee producers have been empowered through participation in state-funded coffee renovation and specialty coffee certification programs.