Facilitating gender inclusive agri-business.

Two recent phenomena related to sustainable agricultural development converge to frame this article, namely the prioritization of gender and the expanding role of the private sector. The first speaks to the current re-thinking of gender in sustainability discourse and practicegender equity and womens empowerment are gaining traction and priority on the mainstream sustainable development agenda. The second refers to the emerging and growing place of the private sector in sustainable development initiatives, strategies and funding. These two entry points are very different: gender coming from a rights-based and social transformation perspective, and the private sector focus on business, economic viability and profit. We argue that when creatively combined the synergies are tremendous. However, the combining process requires facilitation. We distinguish three arrangements used by large private sector players that operate in international agricultural value chains to link business to sustainable development goals: corporate social responsibility (CSR), certification to social and environmental standards, and public-private partnerships (PPPs). These arrangements are analyzed as different ways to trigger change that combine instrumental, economic and facilitative aspects of human coordination. This article focuses on the nexus of gender, private sector involvement in agricultural development and facilitation: otherwise stated, facilitating interaction to trigger change towards more gender inclusive agri-business.