FAO.org

This video shows how the clubs in Niger have been crucial in ensuring women’s access to land and water , while contributing to nutrition, food security, gender equality and the reduction of rural poverty at the same time.  ”Access to Water and Land” is part of a series that illustrates the impact of FAO-Dimitra Clubs, a successful gender-transformative approach developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). FAO-Dimitra Clubs are groups of rural women and men who decide to meet regularly to discuss the challenges they face in their daily lives, make decisions together and take collective action [...]

This video highlights the FAO Dimitra Clubs approach, its implementation, functioning modalities and keys features.  “FAO-Dimitra Clubs: Stepping stones for action in rural areas” is part of a series that illustrates the impact of FAO-Dimitra Clubs, a successful gender-transformative approach developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). FAO-Dimitra Clubs are groups of rural women and men who decide to meet regularly to discuss the challenges they face in their daily lives, make decisions together and take collective action to solve community problems with their own means.  Since 2006, 1600 FAO-Dimitra Clubs have been set up in Burundi, DR [...]

Women play key roles in rural economies, where the fight against hunger and poverty is most pressing. They are also central to family food security and nutrition. However, compared to their male counterparts, rural women typically face multiple gender-based constraints – particularly in their access to productive resources (e.g. land, technologies, training and services) and economic opportunities (e.g. access to markets and decent employment) – which prevent them from becoming equally competitive economic players. Gender equality can be foster through practical policy measures. The Gender in Agricultural Policies Assessment Tool (GAPo) is a toolkit that FAO developed to support national [...]

The demand for food is expected to increase by 60 percent in the next 37 years as the world’s population is estimated to reach 9.2 billion by 2050. Mobile technology would effectively improve the transmission of agricultural research results forapplication in farmer’s fields.

Mobile phones have been shown (though not uniformly) to positively contribute in various ways to rural development, from reducing information asymmetry, improving functional networks, to increasing access to services and finance. Yet a digital gender divide exists. When contrasted with the fact that women compromise 43% of the worlds’ agricultural labor force, this digital gender divide can inhibit rural development. There is substantial exploration of the digital gender divide in the literature. Yet the answers to questions regarding differential access and use of information and communication technologies are mostly inconclusive. This study tries identify the information needs of the rural [...]

During the review period (2007-2015), the government continued to support small and medium scale producers through several schemes, including distributing seeds, expanding agricultural credit, providing direct payments and marketing programmes. Since 2005, the National Pledge Programme has been targeting rice producers and financing storage in periods of low prices or oversupply.

In response to the declining production trend for maize and wheat over the period 2007-2016, the government took measures that included direct inputs assistance to farmers, provision of extension services, and liberalization and deregulation measures. However, financial constraints, together with a number of weather-related shocks, have considerably limited the impact of these measures on agricultural production and development

Rwanda has made remarkable progress since the 1994 genocide, which severely impoverished the population, particularly in delivering education and health services to the poor. The proportion of people suffering from hunger has been halved and the progress toward reducing under-nourishment has been commendable. However, 44 percent of Rwandans still live under the national poverty line.

Mozambique’s general policy frameworks like the Government’s Five-year Plan (PQG) and the Strategic Plan for Agricultural Sector Development (PEDSA) set specific objectives like establishing legal frameworks and policies that are conducive to agriculture growth and investment. So far, the agricultural policy has been focusing on transforming the sector, shifting production away from mainly subsistence activities. 

The importance of agriculture to Mongolia’s economy, and to its rural economy in particular, makes sustainable agricultural development a national priority. The transition from collective socialism to a market economy in the 1990s nearly caused the collapse of the entire agriculture sector. Since privatization, the number of livestock animals, mainly sheep and goats, has increased dramatically, reaching 45.1 million in 2012. This growth in both livestock and crop production was enabled by several factors. Yet investment in research and extension remains very low. Without sufficient government backing for research and development, extension services and veterinarians, information about weather and prices [...]