WUNRN
15 October 2010
RURAL WOMEN - POWERFUL AGENTS OF CHANGE As a
young girl, Frida Wanjiri Mwai watched women in her village in central Since
that time the group has shown what women can achieve with a little training and
good organization. The success of the women’s group led her to join an
18-member agricultural development cooperative set up by an IFAD-supported
project in her village. She is now respected as one of the key people involved
in community development. “When
women come together, they are powerful,” she says. In
honour of the crucial role that women such as Mwai play in their communities,
the United Nations declared 15 October the International Day of Rural Women. Since
2008, the day has recognized “the contribution of rural women, including
indigenous women, in enhancing agricultural and rural development, improving
food security and eradicating rural poverty”. A multitude of roles, the potential to transform communities “Rural
women have the potential to propel their households and communities forward, to
lift them out of poverty,” says Annina Lubbock, IFAD’s Senior Technical Adviser
on Gender and Poverty Targeting. “When investments reach women, transformations
begin to occur.” In
developing countries, rural women fulfil many different roles: they are
farmers, caretakers of children and the elderly, wage labourers and
small-scale-entrepreneurs. They often spend long hours fetching water and
collecting firewood. But too often they are held back by lack of education,
unequal property rights and limited control over resources. “To
tap women’s potential, we need to first understand their challenges and their
needs, and then direct our investments accordingly,” says IFAD-supported
projects demonstrate that investing in women can generate significant
improvements in productivity and food security. Entire communities benefit
socially and economically when women have access to water and land, education
and training, and strong organizations. IFAD’s
experience shows that: *
Women’s empowerment benefits not only women themselves, but also
their families and communities. *
Farm productivity increases when women have access to
agricultural inputs and relevant knowledge.
*Women are dynamic
organizers and participants in grass-roots organizations, and are effective in
promoting and sustaining local self-help initiatives.
*Malnutrition and
mortality among both boys and girls are reduced when girls obtain greater
access to primary and secondary education.
*There is a strong
correlation between women’s literacy and lower HIV/AIDS infection rates. *Women
have a strong track record as prudent savers and borrowers in microfinance
programmes, using income to benefit the entire household. “Investing
in women is not just about achieving the third Millennium Development Goal,
which is to promote gender equality and empower women,” says Lubbock.
“Investing in women by promoting gender equality is vital to achieving all the
other goals as well.”