FAO, IFAD and WFP push to enhance rural women and girls’ digital capabilities so they can be equal contributors to our agrifood systems.

ROME – Inclusive access to digital technologies and education is crucial to reducing gender inequalities and empowering rural women and girls. That was the message from three United Nations’ food and agriculture agencies as they marked International Women’s Day 2023.

Participants at the event, co-organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), recognized that while digitalization on its own cannot solve all the gender-related disadvantages women face, if provided with equal access to digital technology and education, women can have a more active and effective role in our agrifood systems.

“Admittedly, it is discouraging to celebrate International Women’s Day at a time when we are going backwards on gender equality and are seeing widening gender gaps in science, technology and innovation,” said FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol. “When we invest in rural women, we invest in resilience, in the future of our communities and in creating a more inclusive and equitable world – one where no one is left behind.”

“Without increased access to digital technology and innovation, rural women and girls will continue to face barriers and socio-economic disadvantages, making it harder for them to fully participate in rural economies,” said IFAD Associate Vice-President Jyotsna Puri, Strategy and Knowledge Department. “Gender inequality and the urban-rural divide will only worsen unless we create a more inclusive and prosperous society for everyone.”

“Food security for households and communities is in the hands of the women. It is only through women’s empowerment that we can build a world where no one goes to sleep hungry,” said the U.N. World Food Programme’s Deputy Executive Director, Valerie Guarnieri. “Putting resources in the hands of women is a no-brainer and with this comes the transfer of knowledge and skills including digital literacy to help these women realize their full potential. Now that’s the kind of game changer that we can all get behind.”

While there is a rapid proliferation of digital tools and services, women continue to face systemic and structural barriers in accessing and adopting new technologies. Evidence on the gender gap indicates that globally 69% of men are using the internet compared with 63% of women. Women in low- and middle-income countries are 16% less likely to use mobile internet than men, and progress in reducing the mobile internet gender gap has stalled.

Recent statistics show that this contrast is even starker in rural areas. Rural women are particularly disadvantaged in terms of access to Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and less likely to engage with ICT solutions due to constraints such as affordability, illiteracy, user capabilities, and discriminatory social norms.

Under the theme: DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality:  Leveraging the transformative power of inclusive digitalization and innovation for rural women and girls

Today’s event in Rome brought together thought leaders, policy and change makers who are working on innovative solutions to bring about gender equality in rural areas and beyond. Discussions also highlighted the achievements of rural women related to digital literacy, digital skills and agripreneurship.

Event panelists included: Kusum Balsaraf, general manager of Mahila Arthik Vikas Mahamandal; Su Stephanou, founder of Green Dreams and iCow; Claudia Carbajal Morelos, director at Precision Development; Isabelle Carboni, insights director, Digital Inclusion, Mobile for Development, GSMA; and Cesar Maita Azpiri, senior innovation manager, Global Gender unit at IDH – The Sustainable Trade Initiative.

FAO works to promote the adoption of specific digital technologies through initiatives like the International Platform for Digital Food and Agriculture, FAO Digital Portfolio, E-Agriculture Community of Practice and the 1000 Digital Villages. The FAO Office of Innovation established the Global Network on Digital Agriculture and Innovation Hubs to foster innovation within their digital agriculture ecosystem, with a special focus on women and young agripreneurs, among other programs. Next month, FAO will launch a new report entitled the Status of Women in Agrifood Systems, which will provide evidence on how empowering women can lift millions of people out of hunger and make agrifood systems more resilient and sustainable.

IFAD is an international financial institution and a United Nations specialized agency. Based in Rome – the United Nations food and agriculture hub – IFAD invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, IFAD has provided more than $24 billion in grants and low-interest loans to fund projects in low- and middle-income countries.

The U.N. World Food Programme’s work on digital financial literacy helps communities enhance their livelihoods, access financial services and tools and, in the long run, strengthen their food security. For example, through its cash-based transfer programs across the globe, the U.N. World Food Programme seeks to directly address the barriers to digital and financial services borne out of socio-cultural norms and gender-based stereotypes. By assisting women with digital and financial literacy trainings and working with community champions, the U.N. World Food Programme helps them to open their own banking, mobile money or other digital accounts. This brings economic benefits including food security to these women and, in turn, their families and entire societies.

More on this topic:

• The United Nations theme for International Women’s Day this year is “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality”
• FAO International Women’s Day
• UN Women
• FAO Gender
• FAO Director General’s video message
• WFP’s work on gender equality

 

Humanitarian assistance averted a catastrophe in the harsh winter months – but hunger continues across the country at unprecedented levels.

KABUL – 19.7 million people, almost half of Afghanistan’s population, are facing acute hunger according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis conducted in January and February 2022 by Food Security and Agriculture Cluster partners, including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and many NGOs.

The report predicts that the outlook for June-November 2022 sees a slight improvement in the food security situation, with a reduction in the number of people facing acute food insecurity to 18.9 million people. This is due in part to the coming wheat harvest from May to August and this year’s well-coordinated scale-up of humanitarian food assistance – alongside increased agricultural livelihood support. However, the report warmed that gains will be limited. Lingering drought and the deep economic crisis mean unprecedented hunger will continue to threaten the lives and livelihoods of millions of people across Afghanistan.

Of particular concern – and for the first time since the introduction of the IPC in Afghanistan in 2011 – a small pocket of “catastrophic” levels of food insecurity (IPC Phase 5) has been detected in the country. More than 20,000 people in the northeastern province of Ghor are facing catastrophic levels of hunger because of a long period of harsh winter and disastrous agricultural conditions.

“Unprecedented levels of humanitarian assistance focused on bolstering food security have made a difference. But the food security situation is dire. Humanitarian assistance remains desperately important, as do the needs to rebuild shattered agricultural livelihoods and re-connect farmers and rural communities to struggling rural and urban markets across the country. Unless these happen, there will be no way out of this crisis,” said Richard Trenchard, FAO representative in Afghanistan.

“Food assistance and emergency livelihood support are the lifeline for the people of Afghanistan. We mounted the world’s largest humanitarian food operation in a matter of months, reaching more than 16 million people since August 2021,” said Mary-Ellen McGroarty, the U.N. World Food Programme’s country director and representative in Afghanistan.

“We are working with farmers, millers, and bakeries, training women and creating jobs to support the local economy. Because the people of Afghanistan would much prefer jobs, women want to be able to work, and all girls deserve to go to school. Allowing the economy to function normally is the surest way out of the crisis, otherwise suffering will grow where crops cannot,” she added.

The upcoming harvest will bring some relief to millions of families struggling with income losses and food shortages. However, for many, the harvest will only offer short-term relief and very little opportunity for recovery. The war in Ukraine continues to put pressure on Afghanistan’s wheat supply, food commodities, agricultural inputs and fuel prices. Access to seeds, fertilizer and water for irrigation is limited, labor opportunities are scarce and enormous debts have been incurred to buy food over the last few months.

Both FAO and the U.N. World Food Programme continue to scale up their programs across the country. The U.N. World Food Programme has reached more than 16 million people so far in 2022 with emergency food assistance and is supporting local markets – working with retailers and local suppliers. The U.N. World Food Programme continues to invest in people’s livelihoods through skills training and climate adaption projects so that families can cultivate their land and grow their own food.

FAO continues to scale up its assistance to farmers and herders in rural areas and will assist more than 9 million people in 2022 through a range of interventions supporting crop, livestock and vegetable production, cash transfers, and the rehabilitation of vital irrigation infrastructure and systems.

Supporting agriculture is a cost-effective and strategic intervention that delivers great short-term impact as lifesaving support, while paving the way for longer-term recovery and sustainable development.

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The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Our goal is to achieve food security for all and make sure that people have regular access to enough high-quality food to lead active, healthy lives.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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