CECI in the shea butter subsector Positive impacts for thousands of West African women

Shea butter and West African women

The shea tree grows only in Africa, in a geographical zone spanning the continent from the west coast to the east, from Senegal to Sudan. The greatest concentration of these trees is found in West Africa, in the following countries: Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Mali and Nigeria.

The shea tree produces an edible fruit that contains an almond-shaped nut from which fat is extracted to make shea butter. African women produce the natural shea butter by using the traditional method of manually crushing and churning the nuts, a kind of know-how that has been passed from mother to daughter for many generations. Shea butter production is often the only source of revenue for African women, often representing 80% to 100% of their income. These earnings are of crucial importance because they meet the needs of children, for food, health care and school supplies.