Research Series 74: Women’s empowerment, food systems, and nutrition

This background paper examines the linkages and interactions between women’s empowerment, food systems, and nutrition. It examines:

• How women’s empowerment and gender equality relate to a range of nutrition outcomes across various levels in six countries in Asia and Africa.
• The factors that are conducive to greater empowerment of women and gender equality based on a literature review and analysis of data on women’s empowerment in agricultural value chains in Bangladesh, the Philippines, Benin, and Malawi.
• Three case studies from rural Burkina Faso, Kenya, and Nigeria that were gender sensitive and aimed to improve nutritional status or food security.

Engaging in formative research to understand the challenges women face and explicitly including gender-transformative strategies in intervention design can improve their performance.