What determines women's participation in and within cooperatives? Evidence from a coffee cooperative in Uganda 1

Women face greater constraints than men in accessing resources and markets in sub- Saharan Africa. Participation in cooperatives is held as one way for female smallholders to remedy those disadvantages. Using data from 421 female members and 210 non-members of a coffee and microfinance cooperative in the Rwenzori Mountains of Western Uganda, this paper examines the factors that influence (i) women's participation in cooperatives (ii) and women's intensity of participation within cooperatives. The empirical results highlight the importance of access and ownership of land for women to be able to join the cooperative. Women's intensity of participation is modelled through their decision to participate in collective marketing of coffee and their share capital contributions. It is found that more equal intra-household power relations and length of membership positively influence women's participation in collective marketing and share capital contributions. Group characteristics appear less important.