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„Game Changers - Women in Agriculture“ Award winner 2020
Juliette Pyalo Sebou
Cashew Nut Processor and Trainer (*1987)
Togo
Nominating organization:
GIZ Togo
Project:
Green Innovation Centres for the Agriculture and Food Sector, Togo
“Female farmers are common in the Togolese agricultural sector, but rarely do we find women in processing of agricultural products as part of local value addition. Juliette Pyalo Sebou - a young rural woman - has changed this game by starting her own business in cashew processing. Juliette Pyalo Sebou is a successful entrepreneur who already at a young age had initiated cashew processing in her local community and the Kara region. Now she is going beyond.
Despite the common business practice of marketing unshelled raw nuts, she is the first woman to run an artisanal shelling unit for raw cashew nuts. Additionally, she has implemented a module to introduce this advanced technology to women volunteers in cashew and groundnut processing, opening up new economic perspectives to local communities. Juliette Pyalo Sebou also engages in a cashew advise service playing an important role for many families engaged in processing.
She actively disseminates knowledge and information on innovations in cashew and groundnut processing and hence contributes significantly to the development of female entrepreneurship. Thanks to her personal engagement and business model, more than 800 cashew, groundnut and ginger producers do now have a stable local market. This impressive achievement makes her a game changer.”
“I pay tribute to all young women like me who are fighting against all odds to build better living conditions for themselves and their communities. I make an urgent appeal to all Togolese women and those from all over the world to get involved in technical professions and to initiate and manage agricultural enterprises in order to guarantee themselves better living conditions without any dependency.
Juliette Pyalo Sebou
Extract from the nomination
“Juliette SEBOU is a rural Togolese woman who initiated the artisanal processing of cashew nuts and put a product rich in nutritional value on the local market, on the fringes of modern factories whose white almond is destined exclusively for export. It is the only one that has spurred local consumption of the roasted cashew kernel. […] Mrs Sebou's action has improved the image of the young woman in her community. It involves the development of female entrepreneurship and the consolidation of income-generating activities. Today more than ever, this lady's initiative remains a revolution amongst young economic operators in the region because her product is truly exceptional in the range of products consumed in this environment. In a business unit managed by women to train women, her action has attracted the attention of the local authorities who encourage her participation and exposure at trade fairs and the Togolese peasant forum.“
“Ms. Sebou is a real Game Changer. She may not have revolutionized the cashew market and cashew processing, but she has really significantly advanced the market.
Bastian Beege, consultant at the Green Innovation Centres for the Agriculture and Food Sector, Togo