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- Africa
- Asia and Pacific
- The Americas
- Europe and CIS Republics
- List of participating organizations where reports were not available
Bénin
Conseil National des Femmes Indépendantes du Bénin - CONAFIB
A large number of representatives (administrative and higher authorities in Benin) met to celebrate World Rural Women's Day. After speeches from various personalities, the rural women of CONAFIB gave a series of plays, songs and dances to demonstrate their involvement in the production cycle for the transformation of manioc into a foodstuff. The celebrations lasted three days, including WRWD itself. On the last day, the President of CONAFIB, Mrs. Koutimy, gave a speech on the hopes, ambitions, problems and obstacles faced by rural women. These meetings ended with the setting down of propositions and ideas put forward by the participants. The realisation of these will be the responsibility of CONAFIB. CONAFIB asked the two international women's organisations, the FSMF and other friendly international organisations to come to Benin to set up a Bank or National Agricultural Credit Office to help women extricate themselves from rural poverty.
Egypt
Central Agricultural Co-operative Union - CACU
Special article indicating the important role being played by rural women in agriculture and food production, published in their magazine which is distributed in all villages and rural areas through the local co-operatives societies. Organization of two seminars on the national level on the theme of micro credit and of credit facilities which encourage women in rural areas to carry out small projects.
Kenya
Kenya National Farmers Union - KNFU
We were able to join together with the FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture who have also set up a gender division. We observed the day at two rural settings. The day was given publicity through the administration. Women exhibited their work in a form of a show for others to learn . They performed dances and plays depicting the life of the rural women. We really wish we did a video - it was very good. Together with the government department the exhibitions were judged and the best received trophies and a cash award. All of them received certificates. The FAO country representative was the chief guest on this occasion. We have invited many organisations and they all took up the issue of helping women. This is a big improvement from last year, as these organisations were not involved then. We have planned to announce to the government the need for women to have access to credit which is still very difficult in this country because of the kind of requirements in the financial institutions.
Mali
Assemblée Permanente des Chambres d'Agriculture du Mali - APCAM
The WRWD on the 15th October was officially recognised in Mali. This year a large national delegation, led by the Minister for the Advancement of Women, Children and the Family, went to Kita in the Kayes region. The delegation was made up of representatives from different ministerial departments, APCAM, and many technical and international organisations (FAO, UNPD, WFP) At a national level, commemorative activities started on the 14th October, when the town of Bamako was decked in streamers and posters, adverts in the national languages were diffused on national radio, and short programs shown on national television.
The 15th was devoted to sporting activities, a campfire in Kita with sketches on AIDS and begging, and visits to some villages. The speeches of the representatives stressed the context for the celebration of this day, and the theme of microcredit was discussed in detail. APCAM invited the Government to take more notice of the specific needs of women in the development of their policies for rural support by greater consultation with agricultural organisations, and to strengthen the power of women in negotiation with credit institutions. Rural women and professional organisations were called upon to make more effort to emphasise their importance at the centre of all decisions. A discussion meeting was also organised on the systems for granting and repayment of credit by local offices. The day ended with a cultural evening organised by the women of Kita.
Zambia
Zambian Women in Agriculture
Cecilia Makota: "World Rural Women's Day was a resounding success. We had over two thousand particpants and the South African High Commissioner, Themba Walter Thabethe, cut the ribbon to officially open the Rural Women's Training Centre. The occasion was graced by the Southern Area President of the ACWW, Anna Boshoff, who delivered a keynote speech on the theme of 'Give Credit to Rural Women'." Cecilia Makota has also been awarded the prestigious MA'AFRIKA Award, as well as being nominated for the 'Hunger Project Award'.
Bangladesh
Integrated Social Development Effort - ISDE
Distribution of the open letter and posters on a large scale, organization of activities with the network of 15 local NGOs. Rally and discussion meeting among the rural women at unit level with participation of the government, NGOs, teachers, political leader of ISDE. Mobile video show about the importance of giving credit to women, including some successful case studies. Campaign to newspapers and media about the day and the importance of the theme. Letter sent to the Bank and financial institution to motivate their policy to giving credit to rural women.
India
Rural Institute for Development Education - RIDE
- Poster publication
- Group meetings among SHG members about "Give credit to rural women"
- Invited Bank officials and Development agencies to the Meeting
- We sent circular letter and poster to all SHGs and Friendly organisations.
- The posters displayed many important places of Kanchipuram town and the surrounding places
- Organised micro level seminars on Rural Women Entrepreneurship and promotion of self-sufficiency among rural women
- Women in SHGs discussed about women abuse, freedom of women leaders and credit facilities among women.
- World Rural Women's Day translated in Tamil and distributed among our leaders.
Participants were: Women leaders from RIDE covered villages, Head Mistress, AJWS-American volunteer, RIDE staff members, NGO leaders and a few women business people.
After Discussion the following resolution was passed:
- Give credit to rural women
- Stop abuse of women
- Give full freedom to women leaders
- Don't separate women in the name of caste and religion
- Give equal opportunity for all depressed women in all the development fields -- most poor, neglected women are also equally suffering like poor dalit women.
On October 15th, the RIDE organisation organized these following activities in Ride Multipurpose Training Centre:
Centre for Ecology and Research
World Rural Women's Day has been observed by us in Pasupathi Kovil village of Thanjavur in Tamilnadu, India. District collector, joint director of agriculture, District women's welfare officer, eminent lady tamil scholar, Dy general manager NABARD, and all bank official from canara bank attended the function. Microcredit to farm women self-help group organised by our centre and credit card for the farm women has been given by canara bank. More than 330 farm women from nearby villages participated in the function.
Legal Resources for Social Action - LRSA
LRSA joined with the GUIDE (Gandhian Unit for Integrated Development Education) and the ITWWS (Irula Tribal Women Welfare Society) to celebrate the WRWD 99. Besides demanding credit, these organisations put forward three other important demands: stop all forms of violence against rural dalit and tribal women, ensure women's rights over local (common property) resources, and facilitate women's meaningful participation in the local self government units. They decided to prepare a background paper justifying the day (based on IFAP material) and made posters circulated among the small NGOs of Tamil Nadu State. As a result, they had a fully packed hall meeting on the October 15th. Some selective women representatives shared their experiences in establishing their rights in a given area of the three demands. The local media gave due coverage.
Indonesia
LPPSE
Workshop on 14-16 October 1999, West Java: discussion about how to develop the "agropolitan", the "micro-finance services", to be able to support the new approach on income generating of "grass roots" community, as urban poor.
Nepal
Institute of Cultural Affairs ICA
Celebrations in Western Nepal where 200 women are receiving credit by the organization; publication of a pamphlet in Nepali language.
Philippines
Pambansang Kilusan NGMGA Samahan Magsasaka - PAKISAMA
The acceptance of the World Rural Women's Day celebration here in the Philippines is enormous. The National Commission on the Role of the Filipino Women (NCRFW) gathered the different government agencies to celebrate the Rural Women's Day. There was a trade exhibit and a short program to launch the Rural Service program of the government agencies. The most important development this year is the launching of the P1 Billion credit facility for rural women. This was made possible through the efforts of the NCRFW and the Development Bank of the Philippines. This is a great opportunity for the 10 million women farmers to develop their productive skills and capacities.
LAKAMBINI - PAKISAMA
We, at LAKAMBINI- Pakisama participated during the preparations of the above mentioned activities, we plan to be involved in the preparation of the mechanisms for the delivery of that P1 Billion credit facility. However we also celebrated with our own peasant women members, we held a festive celebration in the foot of Malacanang (the Philippine Government's seat of power). Three hundred women farmers, brought their native costumes and danced their way while using empty pots and pans as addition musical instruments. During the festivity, speeches were delivered on how the women farmers are being affected by the seemingly slow implementation of the Food Security program of the Estrada administration. The current declaration of the rice price cut, hardly hit the women farmers, that is why instead of launching those loud and angry protests, the peasant women of LAKAMBINI opted to serenade the President of the Philippines by means of their songs and dances. As a result, a dialogue between the women farmers and Under-secretary Drilon was held. We were also accommodated by the Gender and Development Focal point persons, they shared their accomplishments and limitations as GAD point persons. They presented their difficulties in addressing the interest of the women farmers within the bureaucracy of the Philippine government, particularly within their Department. LAKAMBINI ended the day feeling glad having once again celebrated the Day when once a year - it is the peasant women who are being honoured and given service.
Argentina
Sociedad Rural Argentina - SRA
Poster distribution to various structures which organised activities to celebrate this event.
Paraguay
Centro de Educacion, Capacitacion y Tecnologia Campesina - CECTEC
This year a large mobilization of rural women took place in the month of October, coinciding with the celebration of the World Rural Women's Day on October 15th. The Encounter is supported by FNUAP - ICCO and DIAKONIA, and proposes to tackle the need that organizing women's groups have of achieving greater social and political visibility, and to figure out strategies to present their demands to the present Government.
General Objective: To analyze and develop working rural women's claims as a social and class sector, demanding the implementation of specific policies and actions for this sector of our country.
Specific Objectives:
- Rural women analyzing and working out their demands in aspects related to economy and poverty, participation and power, violence, health and education.
- Rural women analyzing the setting up of a co-ordination space at national level.
- Working rural women presenting their demands to the Executive Power authorities and the Ministers for Agriculture and Women?s Affairs.
- Rural women demanding and supporting the study and approval of the Violence Against Women Law, the Sexual and Reproduction Health Law and the Agrarian Statute.
- Rural women visualizing their contribution to the country?s economy, by means of a Production Fair.
Peru
Pronaturaleza
On the occasion of the World Rural Women's Day, the Country women's Group from the Veinte de Enero community (Loreto, Peru) inaugurated, on the 15th October, their communal premises and their oven for the baking of bread. This project cost around 500 Peruvian soles which were lent by Pro Naturaleza Peru (The Peruvian Foundation for Natural Conservation). The women's group will repay the loan from the profits made from the sale of the bread and yucca rolls that they produce. This community is located in a Protected Natural Area, the Pacaya Samiria Reserve, in the very heart of the Peruvian Amazon.
Confederacion Nacional Agraria - CNA
For the World Rural Women's Day, the CNA highlighted the contribution of women to the country's rural agricultural development and, along with other institutions, looked into the possibility of carrying out joint activities. Moreover, the CNA hopes to spread the importance of the work of rural women through the publication of the CNA INFORMA bulletin, and the radio program LA VOZ DE LA CNA, which is transmitted in various Peruvian Departments. The CNA organized the VI NATIONAL RURAL WOMEN'S ENCOUNTER, in which more than 100 rural women from all over the country. Five foreign guests from Chile, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Brazil and Mexico, took part.
Red Regional Mujer Rural Junin - RRMRP
Extend to a large public the platform 1997 "necessities of rural women and their implementation in 2000".
United States
American Farm Bureau Federation - AFBF - Women Committee
Most of AFBF was getting the message out about WRWD through meetings and the media. They used up aboout 2,000 campaign stickers for the event. Farm Bureau twinned with Zambia Women in Agriculture, and sent 250 stickers to Chair Cecilia Makota in Zambia.
Finland
Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners- MTK
Speech from Sisko Mäkelä (COPA Women Committee/IFAP Women Committee): THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN OTHER EUROPEAN FARMING INDUSTRIES
France
Forum de l'Agriculture Raisonnée Respectueuse de l'Environnement - FARRE
Press release to inform about the WRWD, entitled "les agricultrices en première ligne pour une nourriture saine et le développement durable" (women farmers in the front line for healthy nutrition and sustainable development) addressed to French national newspapers. Articles were also published in regional newspapers.
Centre d'Etudes et de Recherche sur le Développement Communautaire - CERDEC
The eve of World Rural Women's Day was spent in sensitising the media and Town Hall representatives responsible for town squares, fairs and markets to the themes of WRWD. The CERDEC met representatives from the "Nouvelle République", a local magazine that was writing an article on rural women, with particular emphasis on microcredit, in order to inform their local readership. On the 15th the CERDEC met local farm women at the largest food market in Tours. They exchanged information and a prospectus was distributed.
Italy
Confederazione Italiana Agricoltori - CIA and the FAO
A big event was organised in Rome from the 4th - 9th of October 1999. Italy chose to celebrate the WRWD in the South of the country on the theme of peace making meetings between Serb, Alban, Kosovar, and Italian women.
Netherlands
Federatie van Land- en Tuinbouworganisaties - LTO
The Dutch agricultural women representatives - the Women's Committee of LTO- gave their contribution to a international gender conference "The European Women's Meeting" from 14-17 October, organised by the Wageningen Agricultural University, with the theme "Gender and rural transformations in Europe: past, present and future prospects." IFAP President Gerard Doornbos, spoke at this conference.
Wageningen Agricultural University
Gender Studies in Agriculture Department: European Conference on Gender and Rural Transformations in Europe
Turkey
Union of Turkish Chambers of Agriculture - TZOB
Activities by the Union were requested by the General Directorate of Woman Status and Problems of the State Ministry Responsible for the Family. Participation includes the General Directorate of Woman Status and Problems and the authorised persons and the students of agriculture faculty of Ankara University. Events were held at a farm in order to make informational exchanges with the organisation of the Union. Local agricultural chambers also arranged activities on the Day in their own regions.
United Kingdom
National Farmers' Union of England and Wales NFU
In conjunction with the National Federation of Women's Institutes, NFU held a conference in London, with the participation of Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal, on various issues surrounding women in farming. There were also speakers from the government and the European Union who delivered presentations on the impact of economic and political issues on farming, the effects of the millennium on women in farming, food security, rural development and environmental protection. The Vice-Chair of IFAP's Committee on Women in Agriculture, Sisko Mäkelä addressed the participants at this event. A study on women's attitudes towards farming was also presented at this event.
NO POST REPORT but indicated that they organised activities for the WRWD 99
Bénin
Association défis Jeunes pour le Développement - ADJD
Burkina Faso
Association Wend Panga de Boutoko
France
Ministère des Affaires Etrangères, Sous Direction des Droits de l'Homme et Affaires Humaines et Sociales
Fédération Nationale des Syndicats d'Exploitants Agricoles - FNSEA women committee
Ghana
Human Dignity Promotion Programme - HDPP
Haiti
Mouvement Haitien pour le Developpement Rural - MHDR
India
Women's Awareness Forum
Mexico
Celebrations in Mexico City
Nicaragua
Union Nacional des Agricultores y Ganaderos de Nicaragua - UNAG
Norway
Ministry of Regional Development
Peru
Grupo YANAPAI
République Démocratique du Congo
Club UNESCO - Père Jacques VAN HOOF (UMOJA)
South Africa
Photoworkshop
Uganda
Katosi Women Fishing Group
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe Farmers Union - ZFU