Why Should Women be Empowered in Agriculture? Supporting women farmers would help hundreds of millions fight hunger, poverty and climate change. Growth in small-scale agriculture is two to four times more effective at reducing hunger and poverty than any other sector, and women farmers are playing a central role. Oxfam states: "About 80 percent of the world’s food is produced by small-scale farming. Women make up on average 43 percent of this agricultural labor in developing countries. … [Read more...]
Women Entrepreneurs in Rural Areas
January 1, 2014 by
UN Women: National Program on the Promotion of Green Inclusive Production Chains Managed by Women Entrepreneurs in Rural Areas … [Read more...]
Italy donates $1.9 million for women and youth in Kenya and South Sudan
June 22, 2013 by
Project to support access to market for marginalized farmers June 2013, Rome - Poor women and youth in marginalized areas of Kenya and South Sudan will gain improved access to markets for their agricultural produce, under a new project agreement. The $1.9 million project falls under a broader FAO-Italy programme of food security through commercialization of agriculture, in Eastern Africa, West Africa, Central America and the Caribbean. The project represents one of the major areas of … [Read more...]
Bangledesh, Living on new land: Char Development
February 5, 2013 by
The coastlines of Bangladesh are constantly moving. Surveys, based on satellite images, have shown that each year there is a net accretion of around 20 km2: newly formed land of about 52 km2 minus eroded land of around 32 km2. With an assumed density of 800 people per km2, this means that each year approximately 26,000 people lose their land. For many of them, the newly accreted land, or chars, as these new-emerged lands are called in Bangla, offers an alternative home. The Char Development and … [Read more...]
Tanzanian women take matters into their own hands, pooling resources
January 17, 2013 by
“You need to join forces if you want to stand strong,” explains Batuli Massawe, a 46-year-old mushroom farmer who has become a respected entrepreneur due largely to training and solidarity lending in the community of Morogoro, 190 km west of Tanzania’s capital. In a country where agriculture provides the main source of livelihood for a large majority of the population — accounting for more than two-thirds of employment and almost half of Tanzania’s GDP — the the agricultural sector is … [Read more...]
Prediction: 2013 will be a year of serious global crisis.
December 31, 2012 by
The following is an article written last fall, and suggests our world has a great amount of work ahead of us this coming year. If drought is affecting areas of our world that normally enjoy feast; how will we manage a famine? The time is now to Take Action. Prediction: 2013 will be a year of serious global crisis. That crisis is predictable, and in fact has already begun. Rotting corn was damaged by severe drought on a farm near Bruceville, Indiana It will inescapably confront the … [Read more...]
Cooperatives: Empowering women farmers, improving food security
November 16, 2012 by
Cooperatives: Empowering women farmers, improving food security Rural cooperatives and farmers’ organizations play a crucial role in the eradication of hunger and poverty. One of the ways they achieve this is through their vocation to empower small agricultural producers, and in particular women farmers. Empowering women farmers improves food security for all Women comprise on average 43% of the agricultural labour force in developing countries and produce the bulk of the world’s food … [Read more...]
DAKAR – Catch 22, ‘opium’ farmers need Alternative Livelihood
July 28, 2012 by
DAKAR, July 2012 (IRIN) - Upwards of 90 percent of the opium poppies in Myanmar’s northern region are grown in Shan State, even though farmers are aware that if they grow an illicit crop, it may be eradicated and they could lose everything Alternative livelihood support is needed if growers are to be weaned off this double-edged source of income. “Farmers grow opium poppy to buy food, pay off debt and have a cash income to pay school fees and health expenses,” Gary Lewis, regional … [Read more...]
Women in Bolivia – Demands Heard,and Their Presence Felt
February 24, 2012 by
Rural Women in Bolivia Make Their Demands Heard, and Their Presence Felt They work around the clock, searching for firewood at dawn, lighting the morning fire, fetching water, growing and preparing food, caring for children and other family members — along with the endless other tasks and chores that keep a household running. Yet although these functioning households lie at the heart of Bolivian society, the contribution of rural women to the economy remains largely … [Read more...]
Ethiopia, Stop Forcing People Off Their Land!
February 3, 2012 by
Thousands of people are being forced out of their homes to make way for commercial agriculture.They receive little or no compensation for the loss of their land and homes, and are forced into villages without the basic facilities for new people. Stand up against this injustice! » Because of the timing of the relocations, at the beginning of the harvest, and because no food or health resources have been made available for these people, malnutrition, illness and starvation are becoming … [Read more...]
Investing in gender equality at the heart of food security
November 16, 2011 by
Gender equality was discussed as a prominent factor of food security at FAO’s celebration of World Food Day 2011 and throughout the 37th session of the United Nations Committee on Global Food Security (CFS), held at headquarters 17-22 October. 24 October 2011, Rome - Gender equality was discussed as a prominent factor of food security at FAO’s celebration of World Food Day 2011 and throughout the 37th session of the United Nations Committee on Global Food Security (CFS), … [Read more...]
