This document summarizes preliminary findings from research on women's collective action and participation in agricultural markets in Ethiopia. The research aimed to identify different types of collective action taken by women at both formal and informal levels. Some key findings included: 1) Women's involvement in formal groups like cooperatives was generally low, though slightly higher in the dairy sector. 2) Women engaged more often in informal collective actions like sharing transport costs and resources. 3) Such collective actions helped women save time and money but often yielded only marginal economic benefits. 4) Development programs have largely overlooked women's existing informal collective activities and support is needed to strengthen their participation.

1. Characteristics of Women’s Collective Action for Enabling Women's Participation in Agricultural Markets: Preliminary Findings from Ethiopia Presented by Carine Pionetti, Berhanu Adenew, and Zewdi Abadi Alemu Gender and Market Oriented Agriculture (AgriGender 2011) Workshop Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 31st January–2nd February 2011

2. Outline Background and rationale Study methods Some results Summary, lessons and implications Next steps