The future of farming is female

GLOBALLY, according to reports the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, the majority of economically active women in the least-developed countries work in agriculture.

Furthermore and according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture 30% of farmers in the United States are women.

This can easily be attributed to gender-specific obstacles, which put female farmers at a significant disadvantage before they ever plough a field or sow a seed.

Arguably, the biggest roadblock is land rights. In developing countries, only 10%-20% of landholders are women, and in some parts of the world, women still cannot legally own or control land.

When a female farmer isn’t empowered to make decisions about the land she works, she can’t enter contract farming agreements that could provide higher earnings and reliable sources of income.

Africa’s hopes of feeding a population projected to double by 2050 amid a worsening climate crisis rests on huge investments in agriculture, including creating the conditions so that women can empower themselves and lead efforts to transform the continent’s farming landscape.

We recently celebrated the 2020 International Day of Rural Women, and with it the realisation that Africa needs to reflect more on the role women play in food and nutrition security, land and water management.

Also important to consider is the impact of COVID-19 on women’s capacity to provide food for their families and care for their loved ones which underscores the importance of strengthening their capacities by designing gender-responsive actions.

The world has the technology and resources to eradicate hunger but finding the right policies and the will to implement them often eludes us.

Fortunately, young women and men carrying out evidencebased research in sub-Saharan Africa are coming up with some possible answers on how to tackle these pressing issues.

Over 60% of all employed women in sub-Saharan Africa work in agriculture and that women produce up to 80% of foodstuffs for household consumption and sale in local markets.