International Day of Rural Women

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...

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...

Rural women ensure food security for their communities, build climate resilience and strengthen economies. Yet, gender inequalities, such as discriminatory laws and social norms, combined with a fast-changing economic, technological and environmental landscape restrict their full potential, leaving them far behind men and their urban counterparts.

Rural women make up over a quarter the world population and majority of the 43 per cent of women in the global agricultural labour force. They till the lands and plant seeds to feed nations. They ensure food security for their communities and build climate resilience. But when it comes to owning land, accessing agricultural inputs, financing and technologies for climate resilience, they are left far behind men. Rural women: the invisible mainstay of sustainability. In a statement for the International Day of Rural Women (15 October), UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka highlighted the importance of the social and physical infrastructure that enables rural women’s participation in sustainable, climate-resilient agricultural production, processing, transport and marketing. Read more► This year, International Day for Rural Women (15 October), focuses on the theme, “ Challenges and opportunities in climate-resilient agriculture for gender equality and the empowerment of ru...

Women and girls in far flung villages are very rarely in the spotlight. From 15 – 17 October, UN Women commemorates three key United Nations observances related to women’s role in development— International Day of Rural Women (15 October), World Food Day (16 October) and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (17 October). Rural women’s rights, food and poverty are issues that are inextricably linked. In 2016, the International Day of Rural Women and World Food Day will focus jointly on the theme “Climate is changing. Food and agriculture must too”. A high-level commemoration event will take place at the United Nations Headquarters on 17 October, 1.15 - 2.30 p.m. Today, farmers, fishers and pastoralists stand on the frontlines of food insecurity as temperatures rise, weather patterns become less predictable and climate-related disasters become more frequent. As key actors in food systems, as small-scale farmers and those in charge of ensuring adequate nutrition for famil...

Empowering rural women through the SDGs. This week, UN Women marks three UN observances that reflect women's key role in development, beginning with International Day for Rural Women on 15 October, World Food Day on 16 October and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 17 October. These interconnected issues are more relevant than ever before, as the new Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development has just been adopted by world leaders as the new global roadmap. Gender equality and women’s rights and empowerment are cross-cutting throughout the 2030 Agenda , with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Goals are intrinsically linked to the lives of women and girls globally, including that of rural women, who are vital to its success. Particularly the goal to end poverty in all its forms everywhere, the goal to end hunger , achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture as well as the goal to achieve gender equality and women’s...

This week, UN Women marks three  International observances that reflect women's key role in development , beginning with International Day for Rural Women on October 15th , World Food Day on October 16th and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17th . Rural women, the majority of whom depend on natural resources and agriculture for their livelihoods, [1] make up over a quarter of the total world population. [2] In developing countries, rural women represent approximately 43 per cent of the agricultural labour force, [3] and produce, process and prepare much of the food available, thereby giving them primary responsibility for food security. Bearing in mind that 76 per cent of the extreme poor live in rural areas, [4] ensuring rural women’s access to productive agricultural resources empowers women and contributes to decreasing world hunger and poverty. [5]  UN Women supports the leadership and participation of rural women in shaping laws, poli...

This week, UN Women celebrates three days which reflect women's key role in development, beginning with International Day for Rural Women on 15 October, World Food Day on 16 October, and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on 17 October. Gender inequality and limited access to credit, healthcare and education have posed a number of challenges for rural women. Meanwhile, the global food and economic crisis and climate change have only aggravated the situation. Some 925 million people go hungry every day. In many parts of the world, tradition dictates that women eat last, after all the male members and children have been fed. Women are also strong contributors to the economy, and form a large proportion of the agricultural work force globally. They can do much more given equal resources. FAO estimates if women farmers (43 per cent of the agricultural labour force in developing countries) have the same access as men to agricultural resources, this could increase produc...