Recursos

Cuando se consigue el
empoderamiento social y
económico de las mujeres,
estas pueden convertirse en
una fuerza poderosa del
cambio. En las zonas rurales
del mundo en desarrollo, las
mujeres desempeñan una
función crucial en la gestión de
sus hogares y su contribución
a la producción agrícola es
fundamental. Sin embargo,
las desigualdades entre
mujeres y hombres dificultan
la realización del potencial
de la mujer.

This publication looks back at three decades of experiences in introducing labour-saving technologies and practices to rural women and persisting gender discrimination in access and control. It also takes into account major developments in science, technology and innovation over the last several years and shows they can benefi t women.

 En el mundo hay 1 400 millones de personas en situación de pobreza
extrema, que subsisten con menos de 1,25 dólares estadounidenses al
día. Alrededor de 1 000 millones de esos hombres, mujeres y niños
viven en las zonas rurales de los países en desarrollo.
Cerca de 2 000 millones de habitantes de las zonas rurales sobreviven
con menos de 2 dólares al día. Se trata, en su gran mayoría, de pequeños
agricultores y sus familiares, que dependen de la agricultura como medio
de vida.
En la actualidad, esas personas tienen que afrontar cambios rápidos y sin
precedentes: el cambio climático, el crecimiento demográfico mundial y la
volatilidad de los precios de los alimentos y la energía están sumiendo
cada vez a más personas en la pobreza extrema y el hambre.

This paper presents the outcomes of the Special Session of the 2010 Farmers’ Forum, Promoting Women’s Leadership in Farmers’ Organizations and Rural Producers’ Organizations,  that was convened on 12 and 13 February in conjunction with the Thirty-third Session of IFAD’s Governing Council. The session was co-organized by IFAD and the non-governmental organization Women Organizing for Change in Agriculture and Natural Resources (WOCAN).
In plenary session and working groups, over 60 participants – including 35 women farmer representatives, members of the Farmers’ Forum Steering Committee, observers from NGOs and FAO, and many IFAD staff – had a rich discussion that generated important recommendations. 

IFAD will follow up on those recommendations not only as a matter of equity, given women’s enormous contribution to agriculture, but also because a stronger women’s voice and leadership in agriculture are essential to making smallholder agriculture more productive and sustainable.

Desertification is the process of land degradation that affects dryland areas and is caused by poverty, unsustainable land management and climate change. Drylands lose their productive capacity in a spiral of destruction that twins increased land degradation with increased poverty and food insecurity. Drought and desertification threaten the livelihoods of more than 1.2 billion people in 110 countries. 

The problem is particularly acute in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia Desertification is the process of land degradation that affects dryland areas and is caused by poverty, unsustainable land management and climate change. Drylands lose their productive capacity in a spiral of destruction that twins increased land degradation with increased poverty and food insecurity. Drought and desertification threaten the livelihoods of more than 1.2 billion people in 110 countries. The problem is particularly acute in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia.  

In addition to caring for their families, women across the developing world spend considerable proportions of their time and energy using and preserving land for the production of food and fuel and to generate income for their families and communities.

These activities include crop production, growing fruits and vegetables, raising small livestock, tending trees, processing products for food and markets, and managing and collecting water and fuel. Women are usually responsible for the plots in which food crops are grown, while men are responsible for the plots on which cash crops are grown. The latter account for a major part of the threat of soil nutrient depletion and desertification.