- Ten Hag bemoans Man Utd's lack of killer instinct in Palace stalemate
- France's Macron appoints new government in shift to right
- Cheika proud of Leicester grit after winning start as boss
- Profligate Man Utd pay price in 0-0 draw at Palace
- Kane, Olise run riot as Bayern thump Bremen
- Diaz fires Liverpool top of Premier League, Man Utd held at Palace
- LIV champion Rahm out of LIV Team semis with severe flu
- Slot surprised by tearful Nunez's moment of magic
- Title rivals Norris, Verstappen on 'cool' front row for Singapore GP
- Biden talks China with 'Quad' leaders in hometown summit
- Juve and Napoli play out goalless draw in early Serie A title tussle
- Alcaraz fears tennis tour grind will 'kill us'
- Carey sparks recovery as Australia thrash England in 2nd ODI
- Leclerc, Sainz lament 'disappointing' Saturday in Singapore
- Bottega Veneta holds investors' aces as Madonna pops into D&G
- Beirut digs for victims at building flattened in Israeli strike
- Verstappen stages protest over 'ridiculous' swearing punishment
- Bayern boss Kompany lauds 'special talent' Olise
- Diaz fires Liverpool top of Premier League, Spurs bounce back
- Heavy fire over Israel-Lebanon border after deadly Beirut strike
- Ramos guides unbeaten Toulouse to Montpellier win despite Hogg scuffle
- Myanmar flood death toll jumps to 384
- Chelsea owners 'happy' with win at West Ham amid rift report
- Kane and Olise run riot as Bayern thump Bremen
- Ramos guides unbeaten Toulouse to Montpellier win
- Norris pips Verstappen to dramatic Singapore pole after Sainz crash
- Carey takes Australia to 270 in 2nd ODI against England after collapse
- Two Hezbollah leaders killed in Israel's Beirut strike
- Hungary Danube waters reach decade high after Storm Boris
- Bagnaia cuts Martin's MotoGP lead with Emilia-Romagna sprint win
- Jackson double fires Chelsea to victory at woeful West Ham
- Fiji beat Japan to lift Pacific Nations Cup
- Kasatkina to face Haddad Maia in Korea Open final
- S.Africa snowfall closes roads, strands motorists overnight
- Lawyers of women alleging Al-Fayed sex abuse receive over 150 new enquiries
- President Museveni's son backs Ugandan strongman for 7th term
- Norris quickest as Verstappen bounces back in Singapore practice
- Wallabies lament All Blacks' fast start
- Germany's Oktoberfest opens under tight security after attacks
- Environmental protesters block French cruise liner port
- Hezbollah in disarray after Israeli strike kills top commanders
- No place like home: Biden hosts 'Quad' leaders
- One dead, 7 missing as heavy rains trigger floods in central Japan
- Zelensky says no UK, US go-ahead to use long-range missiles
- New Zealand edge Australia 31-28 in Bledisloe Cup thriller
- Japan orders evacuations as heavy rains trigger floods in quake-hit area
- New Zealand pilot freed in Indonesia after 19 months in rebel captivity
- Hezbollah in disarray after Israeli air strike kills top commanders
- Leading climate activist released from Vietnam jail
- Ethiopians struggle with bitter pill of currency reform
Women brew brighter future in DR Congo coffee initiative
The afternoon sun beats down on Lake Kivu in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where on an island, row after row of coffee bushes are bringing forth a rich harvest of berries.
And the main beneficiaries will be women -- the outcome of an equity project in a sector where women are notoriously sidelined and under-paid.
"Women are the ones who work the land, but when it comes to harvesting (the crop) and marketing (it), they get pushed aside -- it becomes a man's business," said Marcelline Budza, a 33-year-old feminist and entrepreneur.
"That was what disgusted me."
Nine years ago, Budza founded an NGO called Rebuild Women's Hope (RWH) to expand the role of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo's coffee sector.
RWH set its eyes on Idjwi, an island of some 300 square kilometres (115 square miles) located in the middle of Lake Kivu, where some of the world's most-lauded coffee is grown.
Arabica coffee from Idjwi has a worldwide reputation -- a richness that comes from being grown at high altitude, in dark volcanic soil and without chemical fertilisers.
"It's exceptional," said Daniel Abamungu Cinyabuguma, manager of the Muungano agricultural cooperative in Goma, on the shore of the great lake.
The berries are picked, washed and sorted before being allowed to ferment and then dry -- labour-intensive work that in the DRC has long been dominated by men.
"Men denigrate the women, saying that coffee growing isn't for them," Budza said.
Overcoming prejudice -- not to mention red tape, tax demands, fraud and lack of credit -- has taken years of effort, which are now being rewarded, she said.
Today, RWH employs at least 12,000 women at the peak of the coffee-harvesting season.
The women chiefly work in processing the coffee and in office administration, and are paid at the same rate as the nearly 900 men.
"My goals are being achieved," said Budza. "Women can now smile, they can be financially independent."
Rosette Nyakalala Bisengi, a 24-year-old cultivator and coffee sorter confirmed things had improved.
But she still earns only 2,500 Congolese francs ($1.25) a day and would like to double that.
Even so, she said, "I have enough money to buy a goat, a chicken... I send my children to school, I buy them clothes."
RWH produces between six and 10 containers of coffee per harvest, each holding 19 tonnes of coffee. The coffee comes from its own fields, but also from a number of small producers.
"Our coffee is consumed in the United States, Europe and Asia. We have really good results," said Budza.
"We hope to expand and reach 20 containers (per harvest), using only local labour."
F.Müller--BTB