How Empowering Women Farmers Will Help To End Hunger

With the world’s population projected to hit almost 9 billion by 2050 and food demand to rise by 60%, there is an urgent need to increase food production. We currently look to sustainable agricultural methods to increase food supply and reduce undernourishment and hunger felt by the world’s poor. However, studies have shown that If we’re going to end hunger in developing countries, we need to empower their women.

In developing countries, almost half of the women claim their livelihood from agriculture. However, it is in these regions where gender disparity is rife – men produce on average 30% more yield than women. Yet 60-80% of the food produced is farmed by women, despite them only owning less than 2% of agricultural land. Studies show that if women had the same access to agricultural resources as men in developing countries, yields would increase and as a result greatly reduce the number of undernourished people.

The root causes of a woman’s inability to benefit from farming lies within traditional, cultural and political injustices that restrict a woman from climbing the economic ladder. There are various barriers preventing equal access to resources and services such as:

• Land Rights
• Ownership of Capital
• Level of Education
• Income

There is evidence to show that gender-sensitive agricultural environments tend to produce higher yields and these countries tend to be more food secure. The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Food Security Index has highlighted that women who have more equal resources and opportunities can produce higher and better quality agricultural yields. And women are more likely to reinvest their income back into their families to improve education, nutrition, and health. When women flourish, families and communities do too.

Empowering women in agriculture can not only tackle insecurity but also produce ‘positive secondary effects’ in the lives of women, their families, and their community. Closing the gender gap alone could lift 100-150 million people out of poverty.

Funding female farmers is the next logical step for sustainable farming. Empowering women to play central roles in all areas of agricultural production is absolutely crucial if developing countries are to achieve their full potential in the agricultural-food sector.