EVELYNE OMONLADE, CHAIRWOMAN OF THE FENAPAB SUPERVISORY BOARD: A FEMALE LEADERSHIP IN THE CASHEW SECTOR!

Woman leader of the rural environment in the town of Kétou 158 km from Cotonou, Mrs. Evelyne OMONLADE is a native of Idigny in the south-east of BENIN. In her forties, she is married and the mother of 4 children. For 20 years, she has been working in the cashew sector, which she joined after taking her steps in the business of buying and reselling various items.  Very active and very listened to in the agricultural environment in Kétou, Evelyne is at the forefront of actions promoting women's access to land. Representative of rural women from Benin at the ECOWAS Conference in Abudja in 2018, she was chosen and delegated by WANEP and OSFAM to validly discuss the involvement of women in agriculture in the West African sub-region and especially in Benin.
In the same vein, she also participated in April 2019 in Adis Ababa (Ethiopia) in the conference on the accessibility of women to the land. Owner of a 3 hectares cashew plantation, she produced 450 kg of cashew nuts per season. From 2017, she followed the BeninCajù training courses on good practices and good production techniques. Currently, she has a production of 1200 kg of cashew nuts per year.
"BeninCajù is a very good project which has strengthened my knowledge and my skills in cashew production. Since I applied the techniques taught, my seasonal production has increased by 166% going from 450 Kg before BeninCajù to 1200Kg in 2 years with BeninCajù. By 2022 in 3 years, I will fight to reach more than 2000 Kg "Evelyne OMONLADE.
Her leadership, her determination and her commitment not only for the cause of women but also for the cashew sector, motivated the support of BeninCajù, and that of the actors of the sector, for her election as President of the Supervisory Board of the National Federation of Cashew Producers of Benin (FENAPAB), which ensures compliance with the internal regulations and statutes, then the management of cooperatives. This corroborates the multiple actions implemented by the BeninCajù project.  
"It is an honor and a pride for me, this magnificent election. I hope this feat does not stop with me. I urge the women of the commune of Kétou to redouble their efforts for the development of the sector." Evelyne OMONLADE.
Find out more on this video!

Evelyne OMONLADE, 3rd from the right, among the women she leads in her town. Awareness session on gender mainstreaming in the cashew sector by the BeninCajù project. Idigny-Kétou, November 2019.