Tackling gender inequality can reduce world hunger and reinforce resilience to shocks like climate change and COVID-19 pandemic
Women in agrifood systems are often held back by inequality and discrimination, marginalised and denied agency, work in poorer conditions with lower wages and carry a greater burden of care and unpaid work. Photo: iStock Tackling gender inequality in agri-food systems can reduce hunger, boost the economy and reinforce resilience to shocks like climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has found.
Closing the gender gap in farm productivity and the wage gap in agri-food-system employment would increase global gross domestic product (GDP) by 1 per cent or nearly $1 trillion, according to The Status Of Women In Agrifood Systems released April 13, 2023.
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If even half of the small-scale producers benefitted from development interventions focusing on women, it would significantly raise the incomes of an additional 58 million people and increase the resilience of an additional 235 million people, said the report.
This would reduce global food insecurity by about two percentage points, reducing the number of food-insecure people by 45 million.
The report is the first of its kind since 2010 (State of food and agriculture (SOFA) 2010–11: Women in agriculture – Closing the gender gap for development). It goes beyond agriculture to provide a comprehensive picture of the status of women working across agri-food systems — from production to distribution and consumption.
Almost four billion people rely on agri-food systems for their livelihoods. Around half of them are women prevented from realising their potential. They are often held back by inequality and discrimination, marginalised and denied agency, work in poorer conditions with lower wages and carry a greater burden of care and unpaid work.
Even though women have gained more access to some resources, such as digital technology and financial services, over the last several years, the gaps are either unchanged or growing in far too many areas, especially for rural women, the report found.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the gap between women’s and men’s food security has grown to 4.3 percentage points — with significantly higher food insecurity among rural women.
Women and girls face barriers and constraints that men and boys do not as a consequence of rigid gender norms and roles, unequal power dynamics and discriminatory social structures, FAO further said.
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These impediments to women’s progress are compounded by the additional challenges posed by climate, economic and price shocks, conflicts and the increasing risks of gender-based violence.
FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu said:
If we tackle gender inequalities endemic in agrifood systems and empower women, the world will take a leap forward in addressing the goals of ending poverty and creating a world free from hunger.
Agri-food systems are a major employer of women globally and constitute a more important source of livelihood for women than for men in many countries.
Despite the importance of agri-food systems for women’s livelihoods and the welfare of their families, women’s roles tend to be marginalised and their working conditions are likely to be worse than men’s — irregular, informal, part-time, low-skilled, labour-intensive and thus vulnerable.
Men have a larger share in agricultural households compared with women owning land in 40 out of the 46 countries reporting on SDG Indicator 5.a.1. Women earn 82 cents for every dollar earned by men and closing these gaps would greatly improve food security, nutrition and increase economic growth.
Women need more access to and control over the livestock, water, seeds, land, technology, and finance needed to grow their livelihoods.
Eliminating discrimination brings tangible benefits and intervention is essential at every level of agri-food systems. Engaging with men and boys makes change happen faster, FAO said.
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A review of a portfolio of 13 agricultural development projects from nine countries in Africa and South Asia, the pro-Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) indicated that the programme's impacts on empowerment were mixed.
The projects included combinations of crops, livestock and nutrition interventions to increase income and nutritional outcomes.
One-third of agri-food system interventions in projects in Africa and South Asia led to a statistically significant increase in household gender parity, one intervention reduced parity and the others had no statistically significant impact.
In addition, women’s control over income, asset ownership and group membership all increased in projects in Africa and South Asia.
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