How it Works: The AWICI Mashinani Program Structure

The AWICI Mashinani Program Structure is a deliberate, year-long framework designed to deliver professional capacity building directly to women in their local communities. We have moved beyond one-off workshops to create a sustained roadmap for economic independence.

Bringing Expertise to the "Mashinani"

Most women in the coffee sector face “time poverty”, the challenge of balancing farm work with family duties. We solve this by decentralizing our training. Instead of asking women to travel to us, we bring the school to them. This ensures that specialized coffee knowledge is accessible, affordable, and practical for every woman, regardless of her location.

Who We Support Across the Value Chain

We focus on the people who have the most potential to change the local coffee economy. By training these specific groups, we strengthen the entire industry:

Smallholder Farmers

Helping women grow higher-quality beans for better prices.

Cooperative Leaders

Empowering women to sit on decision-making boards.

Agri-preneurs

Supporting women in roasting, packaging, and retail businesses.

Youth & Baristas

Building career paths for the next generation of coffee professionals.

The Core Pillars of Training

Our curriculum covers the four essential areas every woman needs to master to succeed in the modern coffee market:

  1. Technical Excellence: Learning Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and climate-smart farming to protect the harvest.
  2. Agribusiness Skills: Teaching financial literacy and record-keeping so women can run their farms like a business.
  3. Governance & Leadership: Preparing women to lead factories and represent their peers in the industry.
  4. Market Access: Connecting members directly to ethical buyers and fair trade opportunities.

Our 5-Phase Implementation Plan

We follow a professional, step-by-step process to ensure our training leads to real-world results:

  1. Community Mobilization: We partner with local leaders and county governments to get the community ready.

  2. Baseline Assessment: We study the specific needs of the region so our training is relevant.

  3. Instruction & Practice: We teach in “Farmer Field Schools” where women learn by doing.

  4. Field Mentorship: We visit the farms to help solve real-time problems with pests, soil, or processing.

  5. Impact Evaluation: We measure success by tracking how much yield and income increased for our members.

A Shared Mission through Partnerships

We believe in the power of collaboration. AWICI Mashinani works with national experts like the Coffee Research Institute (CRI) and AFA – Coffee Directorate to ensure our training meets international standards. By working with local mills and global partners like the IWCA, we create a complete support system for every woman in the program.

Join the Movement

AWICI Mashinani is growing, and there is a place for everyone in this journey, whether you are looking to learn or looking to support.