Rural Women in Drylands (CGIAR)

 

Photo credit: CGIAR

International Day of Rural Women on 15th October

Development and environmental sustainability in rural drylands of the developing world is – without doubt – underpinned by the critical role that women play in agriculture, food and nutrition security, household incomes, health and wellbeing, education, as well as other cultural and socio-economic aspects of life. Yet, women are often excluded from decision-making processes and denied access to critical resources.

At the CGIAR Research Program on Dryland Systems, we believe rural dryland communities can thrive only when all members are empowered equally to contribute to and benefit from sustainable agricultural livelihoods. To mark the upcoming International Day of Rural Women on 15th October, I am pleased to invite you to explore:

• Key Gender Research Studies and Highlights from Dryland Systems work over the past year.
• Two publication reviews of recent gender-responsive studies on Smallholder Goat Production and Marketing: A Gendered Baseline Study in Mozambique, and on Gender Dynamics in Water Governance Institutions in Zimbabwe.
• An Exposure photo story on Rural Women in Drylands: Their Success – Our Future, showcasing the multifaceted roles and contributions of rural women in dryland communities.
• A blog story by Dr. Dina Najjar, gender specialist at ICARDA describing her research insights on the wages and working conditions of landless women and men in the agricultural sector in Morocco.
• An interview with Mrs. Bezaiet Dessalegn, livelihoods and development specialist at ICARDA, who recounts her experience with key challenges to integrating gender in the research process and to achieving gender parity in agriculture and science.

Read the full article: CGIAR