NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Women are major contributors to agriculture and rural economies, and their work and lives are not immune to the effects of the global pandemic. Restrictions on movement, increased caretaking duties, and increased incidences of gender-based violence all reduce livelihood opportunities during this time. Lower income can create secondary effects, as women typically invest in education, health care and business reinforcement.

Every year, on October 15, the UN’s family of countries celebrate the social, economic, and political progress made by 1.7 billion women and girls who live in rural areas. Member countries also call attention the ways to prevent, mitigate and eliminate the discrimination, marginalization and violence faced by tens of millions of rural and indigenous women.

Effective development and violence prevention interventions include supporting women’s livelihoods in smallholder farming, fishing, livestock-keeping and rural entrepreneurship; enabling greater access to land, credit and other productive resources; strengthening women’s representation in producers’ organizations and community decision-making bodies and working with rural men to create positive behavior change.

To coincide with the United Nations’ International Day of Rural Women, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and Devex will host a virtual event to elevate the experience of rural women working in the agriculture and food sectors during COVID-19 and to explore effective response methods in this time of crisis.