WRWD 2007: “The right to food: rural women produce and provide”
Recommendations by rural women
JMFR 2007: « Le droit à l’alimentation: les femmes rurales agissent et produisent »
DMMR 2007: “El derecho a la alimentación: las mujeres rurales actúan y producen”
The day provides rural women and their organizations with a focal point to :
- Raise the profile of rural women,
- Sensitize both government and public to their crucial, yet largely unrecognized roles, and
- Promote action in their support. Initiatives on how to celebrate this day are left to individual organizations and communities, according to their own traditions and requirements. Activities or events should be concrete and visible. This action undertaken by rural and farming women in all parts of the world on the very same day, in a spirit of solidarity and cooperation, would strengthen the impact of the day.
IFAP/FIPA
International Federation of Agricultural Producers
60 rue Saint-Lazare
Paris 75009 France
Tel: 01 45 26 05 53
Fax: 01 48 74 72 12
Women's World Summit Foundation
PO Box 2001
1211 Geneva 1Switzerland
Tel: 41 22 738.66.19
Fax: 41 22 738.82.48
E-mail: wwsf@vtxnet.ch
* Rural women, mainly farmers, are at least 1.6 billion and represent more than a quarter of the total world population.
* Women produce on average more than half of all the food that is grown: up to 8O per cent in Africa, 6O per cent in Asia, between 3O and 4O per cent in Latin America and Western countries.
* Women own only 2 per cent of the land, and receive only one per cent of all agricultural credit.
* Only 5 per cent of all agricultural extension resources are directed to women.
* Women represent two third of all illiterate people.
* The number of rural women living in poverty has doubled since 197O.