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ICRW Praises Call to Invest in Women to End Hunger

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U.S. Government Unveils Global Food Security Plan
Thu, 05/20/2010

USAID Administrator Raj Shah on May 20 unveiled the U.S. government’s "Feed the Future" plan to advance global food security. Among the plan's central themes, Dr. Shah outlined its call to "invest in women as agricultural producers and as critical actors for creating a food secure world." Feed the Future further points out the importance of increasing women farmers’ incomes and their access to resources, and including women agricultural extensionists in modern agricultural extension systems. Additionally, the plan stresses the need to focus on crops such as sweet potatoes and legumes, which are important to women, as well as the critical role that women play in child and household nutrition.

The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), which has conducted research on the role of women farmers in the developing world for more than 30 years, issued the following statement:

"Today the U.S. government put women farmers at the center of its efforts to end global poverty and reduce hunger. The Feed the Future plan recognizes that the majority of low-income women in the developing world rely on agriculture for food security and economic advancement. This is a welcomed and significant shift in how women's untapped potential as economic agents of change is viewed," said Rekha Mehra, director of economic development.

"Our success in ending global hunger depends on the administration’s ability to follow through on these commitments to women farmers,” added David Kauck, senior gender and agricultural specialist.

Media Contact: 
Jeannie Bunton, 202.742.1316, Jbunton@icrw.org
Mission Statement: 

ICRW's mission is to empower women, advance gender equality and fight poverty in the developing world. To accomplish this, ICRW works with partners to conduct empirical research, build capacity and advocate for evidence-based, practical ways to change policies and programs.

Commentary: Hungry for Change

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To Solve Hunger, Learn from History
Wed, 05/19/2010
By ICRW Communications Staff

As governments and donors recommit resources to reduce world hunger, it would be wise for us to reflect on past efforts to spur agricultural development.

As governments and donors recommit resources to reduce world hunger, it would be wise for us to reflect on past efforts to spur agricultural development.

The renewed attention to the issue is evident: On May 20, a symposium sponsored by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and ICRW, among others, marks the debut of “Feed the Future.” Led by U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration, the initiative aims to reduce global hunger through agricultural development. The World Bank, U.S. Treasury and other governments have initiated a multilateral trust fund for the same purpose. And the U.S. Congress will consider legislation to support global food security this year.

Now with the spotlight once again on agriculture and hunger, it would serve us well to learn from prior efforts in the 1980s and 1990s to improve agricultural development. The unfulfilled promise of the past can be attributed, in part, to the flawed assumptions about women farmers, who make up the majority of poor, rural populations in sub-Saharan Africa.

Previous attempts to include women in agriculture projects failed to understand that women farmers' roles and responsibilities were as diverse as their male counterparts. For example, in Zimbabwe, efforts to adopt high-yielding maize found that taste was more important to women who grew maize for consumption. Men cultivated the vegetable as a cash crop.

Another analysis found that women are less likely to take risks and are slow to adopt new technologies. This is because they typically have and control fewer productive resources. Traditional roles and relationships between women and men also influence agricultural growth; microeconomic research has shown that gender inequality in farm households can contribute to reduced productivity.

But by heeding lessons from the past, we can identify opportunities to tap into women’s productive potential and increase the likelihood of reducing rural poverty and hunger. However, it requires a sincere commitment this time around: New public and private sector initiatives must involve women as key economic agents of change. Women farmers must be recognized for their contributions to local, national and global food security as well as agricultural and economic growth. Investments must be linked to thoughtful strategies relevant to local agricultural environments, market conditions and social realities, including gender norms.

Finally, donors, policymakers, development practitioners and agribusinesses must significantly shift their thinking about women, food security, agriculture and the global marketplace. Not until our investments recognize and support women’s roles in agriculture – from production and processing to marketing – will we truly achieve success in feeding the world.

A Significant Shift builds on ICRW's decades of research and practical application on how and why to involve women in agricultural development efforts, as farmers, farm workers and agricultural businesswomen and entrepreneurs. Learn more about ICRW's current work in agriculture and food security ››
 

What it Means for Women

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Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security
Thu, 05/13/2010

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. government on May 20 will unveil its forward-looking implementation initiative to tackle global hunger and food security at the Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security. The International Center for Research on Women’s (ICRW) Rekha Mehra, director, economic development, and David Kauck, senior gender and agriculture specialist, are available to comment on what this initiative could mean for low-income women farmers who rely on agriculture to meet their own and their family’s needs and for economic advancement. ICRW is a co-sponsor of the symposium.

Mehra leads ICRW’s research, program and policy work on agriculture, employment and enterprise development, and property rights. She has more than 25 years of international development programmatic and research experience in 15 developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean and was a senior gender specialist in the World Bank’s Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Group. Mehra specializes in agriculture and food security; economic empowerment; employment and enterprise development; and assets and property rights.

Kauck is a social scientist, development practitioner and policy analyst with more than 25 years of international experience. His areas of expertise include agricultural development and social change in agrarian societies; food and livelihood security; assessment of the patterns and causes of rural poverty; and public policy and comparative politics. 

Both Kauck and Mehra recently returned from consultations in Kenya where women farmers, the organizations that work with them and local technical experts discussed their needs and what worked to improve their agricultural productivity and marketability.

For more than 30 years, ICRW has explored how and why to involve women in agricultural development efforts as farmers, farm workers, agricultural businesswomen and entrepreneurs. Our research helps development organizations, policymakers and others find practical ways to enhance women’s roles in agricultural production and trade, thereby improving their incomes and livelihoods.

Notes to editors:
1. Investing in women farmers promises to yield a double dividend: better food security and greater economic growth. Watch ICRW’s short video “Small Farmers, Big Solutions” on how this can be done.
2. The Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security will be held in Washington, D.C., on May 20. All queries about attendance should be directed to Lindsay Iversen at the Chicago Council at liversen@thechicagocouncil.org

Media Contact: 
To arrange an interview with Kauck or Mehra, please contact Jeannie Bunton at 202.742.1316, Jbunton@icrw.org
Mission Statement: 

ICRW's mission is to empower women, advance gender equality and fight poverty in the developing world. To accomplish this, ICRW works with partners to conduct empirical research, build capacity and advocate for evidence-based, practical ways to change policies and programs.

U.S. Initiatives to Promote Global Food Security

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Historically, the United States has been the single largest donor of emergency food aid to the developing world. But recent events, such as the food crisis and economic recession, along with shifts in global policies have spurred U.S. investment in long-term agricultural development, particularly through small-scale farmers, as a mechanism for reducing hunger and poverty worldwide.

Food Security Comes to Capitol Hill

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Women's Edition
Fri, 04/30/2010
The New Security Beat

The U.S. House of Representatives Hunger Caucus sponsored a hearing, “Feeding a Community, Country and Continent: The Role of Women in Food Security.” This blog post reports on the hearing with quotes from David Kauck, ICRW's senior gender and agriculture specialist who was a panelist, and findings from ICRW's research report, Women, Food Security and Agriculture in a Global Marketplace.

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Women, Food Security and Agriculture in a Global Marketplace

Women, Food Security and Agriculture in a Global Marketplace
A Significant Shift

Rekha Mehra, Mary Hill Rojas
2008

New directions in development assistance and agricultural investments must recognize and support women's involvement in the full agricultural value chain from production to processing to marketing. This report reviews current thinking and practice on increasing agricultural productivity, both subsistence and commercial agriculture, and examines what is known about women's roles in both sectors.

(1.15 MB)

We encourage the use and dissemination of our publications for non-commercial, educational purposes. Portions may be reproduced with acknowledgment to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). For questions, please contact publications@icrw.org; or (202) 797-0007.

Terms and Conditions »

Women Help Solve Hunger

Women Help Solve Hunger

Sandra Bunch, Rekha Mehra
2008

Women help answer the hunger problem in every way possible. They grow food, sell food, buy food, prepare food, and increasingly they are involved in agricultural businesses that help build the economies of many developing countries. Best understood is the role women play in shoring up their families' food supply and ensuring that their families, especially children, receive proper nutrition. Less understood and recognized, however, is the crucial role women can play in increasing overall agricultural productivity and growing agricultural businesses. This position paper aims to fill that gap in understanding by exploring women's role in commercial agriculture.

(131.89 KB)

We encourage the use and dissemination of our publications for non-commercial, educational purposes. Portions may be reproduced with acknowledgment to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). For questions, please contact publications@icrw.org; or (202) 797-0007.

Terms and Conditions »

A Leadership Strategy for Reducing Hunger and Malnutrition in Africa

A Leadership Strategy for Reducing Hunger and Malnutrition in Africa

Charlotte Johnson-Welch, Kerry MacQuarrie, Sandra Bunch
2005

The Agriculture-Nutrition Advantage project was implemented over a three-year period, from 2001 to 2004, to cultivate a network of leaders and advocates in sub-Saharan Africa who would promote an approach to combating hunger that is effective but rarely used in practice: linking agriculture and nutrition, while also accounting for gender. This report provides outcomes and key recommendations of the project.

(1.37 MB)

We encourage the use and dissemination of our publications for non-commercial, educational purposes. Portions may be reproduced with acknowledgment to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). For questions, please contact publications@icrw.org; or (202) 797-0007.

Terms and Conditions »

Women, Population and the Environment

Women, Population and the Environment
Markets, Institutions and the Importance of Women's Economic Roles

Margaret A. Lycette
1995

Women, Population and the Environment: Markets, Institutions and the Importance of Women's Economic Roles  argues that, while a reproductive rights approach to population planning can be an important component of environmental protection strategies, more attention must be paid to the relatively neglected role of market and policy failures that affect women as agriculturalists, economic actors and consumers of natural resources.

For over thirty years, ICRW has examined the role of women in increasing agricultural production and sustainably managing natural resources. These historic publications present ICRW’s groundbreaking research and analysis in examining the role of women as economic agents of change in agriculture systems.

See other historical agriculture publications:
Gender in Community Development and Resource Management
Bridging the Gender Gap in Agricultural Extension
Women, Land and Sustainable Development
Women in Agriculture: What Development Can Do

Download Women, Population and the Environment: Markets, Institutions and the Importance of Women's Economic Roles:

(1.21 MB)

We encourage the use and dissemination of our publications for non-commercial, educational purposes. Portions may be reproduced with acknowledgment to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). For questions, please contact publications@icrw.org; or (202) 797-0007.

Terms and Conditions »

Women in Agriculture: What Development Can Do

Women in Agriculture: What Development Can Do

Mayra Buvinic, Rekha Mehra
1990

For over thirty years, ICRW has examined the role of women in increasing agricultural production and sustainably managing natural resources. These historic publications present ICRW’s groundbreaking research and analysis in examining the role of women as economic agents of change in agriculture systems.

Women in Agriculture: What Development Can Do summarizes findings on women's roles in farming systems, describe the impact of agricultural technologies on women in agriculture, and present an agenda for improving their situation.

See other historical agriculture publications:
Bridging the Gender Gap in Agricultural Extension
Gender in Community Development and Resource Management
Women, Population and the Environment
Women, Land and Sustainable Development

Download Women in Agriculture: What Development Can Do

(1.62 MB)

We encourage the use and dissemination of our publications for non-commercial, educational purposes. Portions may be reproduced with acknowledgment to the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW). For questions, please contact publications@icrw.org; or (202) 797-0007.

Terms and Conditions »

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