Improving Gender Responsiveness of Cassava Value Chain in sub-Saharan Africa: the Role of CSR in Nigeria’s Oil Producing Region

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to critically examine the multinational oil companies’ (MOCs) corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives in Nigeria. Its special focus is to investigate the impact of the global memorandum of understanding (GMoU) on improving gender responsiveness of cassava value chain in Niger Delta regions of Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts a survey research technique, aimed at gathering information from a representative sample of the population, as it is essentially cross-sectional, describing and interpreting the current situation. A total of 780 rural women respondents were sampled across the Niger Delta region. Findings – The results from the use of a combined logit model and propensity score matching indicate that CSR of the MOCs using GMoU model has recorded little but significant success in enhancing rural women participation in the cassava value chain in the Niger Delta. Practical implications - This implies that if CSR interventions are not tailored to enhance opportunities for women, they may contribute towards reducing the participation of women in economic, political and social development and, by extension, damping efforts of reducing poverty and achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs) in the Niger Delta. Social implications – This suggests that MOCs’ CSR interventions in the cassava value chain should consider gender relations to benefit men and women and alleviate household poverty. Originality/value – This research contributes to the inequality debate in the agrifood value chain and inclusive growth literature from the CSR perspective in developing countries and the rationale for demand for social projects by host communities. It concludes that business has an obligation to help in solving problems of public concern.