International Day of Rural Women

 Observed on October 15th , the  International Day of Rural Women  is to recognize the vital role rural women play in agriculture, food security, and rural development . It also aims to highlight the challenges they face, such as unequal access to resources , and to promote policies that empower them and improve their livelihoods . The observance of the day promote the crucial work of rural women in crop production, processing, preparing, and distributing food . It acknowledges their role in agricultural and rural development, the eradication of rural poverty, and achieving sustainable development goals. It promotes awareness of their challenges, such as lower incomes and food insecurity, and advocates for increased access to resources, decision-making power, and opportunities.

The International Day of Rural Women recognizes the critical roles and contributions of rural women , including Indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving food security and nutrition, and eradicating rural poverty . These are vital for protecting and securing our common future. The 2024 International Day of Rural Women invites all stakeholders to celebrate rural women’s essential role in building climate resilience, conserving biodiversity, and caring for the land . Members of SCOCCOMAD, Cameroon, pose for a group photo near a section of their cassava crop in December 2018. There is much to protect against and to restore. Climate change, biodiversity loss, and land degradation have had significant impacts on the rights, resilience, and resources of rural women and girls. UN Women’s latest research estimates that globally, under a worst-case scenario, climate change may push up to 158 million more women and girls into poverty and 236 million more...

The celebration of the  International Day of Rural Women recognizes that rural women are uniquely situated to help mitigate the causes of global warming and adapt to its impacts on the ground . Additionally, it acknowledges that climate variability has a more pronounced impact on women, primarily indigenous and peasant women, whose agricultural dependence, living conditions and marginalization expose them to a greater degree of changes due to climate, loss of diversity and pollution.

The theme for the International Day of Rural Women ( 15 October ), “ Rural Women Cultivating Good Food for All ”, highlights the essential role that rural women and girls play in the food systems of the world. From production of crops to processing, preparing and distributing foods, women’s labour – paid and unpaid – feeds their families, communities and the world. Yet, they do not wield equal power with men, and as a result, they earn less income and experience higher food insecurity. Despite our planet’s capacity to provide sufficient and good food for all, hunger, malnourishment, and food insecurity are rising in many parts of the world. The COVID-19 pandemic, along with climate crises, have made matters worse: some 2.37 billion people did not have enough to eat in 2020 –that’s 20 per cent more than the year before. UN Women’s latest report, Beyond COVID-19: A feminist plan for sustainability and social justice , calls for rebuilding the broken global food system from the bottom...

This year on International Day of Rural Women ( 15 October ), we’re celebrating the vital role that rural women play in climate action with a spotlight on “ Rural women and girls building resilience ” theme. As the world faces an increasingly critical need to address climate change, the important impact that rural women and girls have on building resilience is undeniable. It will take not only leaders, but whole populations to make the changes for a carbon-neutral world. Rural women and girls are leaders in agriculture, food security and nutrition, land, managing natural resource management and unpaid and domestic care work. They are at the frontline when natural resources and agriculture are threatened. In fact, globally, one in three employed women works in agriculture . Women also collect biomass fuels, manually process food materials, and pump water; eighty percent of households without piped water rely on women and girls for water collection. World leaders have committed to ge...

Rural women make up a quarter of the world’s population. They grow much of our food, strengthen economies and build climate resilience. UN Women statement On the International Day of Rural Women , UN Women calls upon the international community to work with rural women and girls everywhere and to invest in the sustainable infrastructure, services and social protection that can revolutionize their livelihoods, well-being and resilience .  Read more» From championing access to clean water in Kyrgyzstan to boosting sustainable agriculture in Ethiopia, rural women are mobilizing to support one another, and their contributions are vital for both rural communities and urban societies. Yet, on almost every measure of development, because of gender inequalities and discrimination, they fare worse than rural men or urban women. On October 15th , the United Nations commemorates the International Day of Rural Women, under the theme, “ Sustainable infrastructure, services and social protect...