Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women's and Girls' Empowerment
Programme to promote the implementation and uptake of the Committee on World food Security (CFS) Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women's and Girls' Empowerment in the Context of Food Security and Nutrition (VG-GEWGE)
The challenge
The denial of women’s human rights is one of the major causes of poverty and food insecurity. Women still earn 82 cents for every dollar earned by men in agriculture, and the gender gap in land productivity between female- and male-managed farms of the same size is of 24 percent (FAO 2023). Despite notable progress, gender inequalities persist, and women and girls remain disproportionately affected by crises, shocks and climate change.
The opportunity
Closing the gender gap in agrifood systems could reduce the number of food-insecure people by 45 million (FAO 2023), contributing to economic growth and the achievement of zero hunger. The Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in the Context of Food Security and Nutrition (VG-GEWGE) provide concrete recommendations to tackle gender-based discrimination and harmful social norms to achieve gender equality. Implementing the guidelines is a key opportunity for real change.
In action
In January 2025, FAO launched a multi-year programme to promote the VG-GEWGE supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Global Affairs Canada, the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, and the Government of France.
The programme
The programme helps stakeholders apply the VG-GEWGE by supporting the integration of its recommendations into their work as well as laws, policies and programmes. This is done through tailored initiatives to each stakeholder group and participating countries reflecting their priorities, constituencies, and ways of working. Activities are designed and implemented under two main objectives:
- Raise awareness about the importance of the VG-GEWGE as a policy instrument and enhance understanding of its content
- Strengthen capacities of stakeholders to implement the recommendations contained in the VG-GEWGE
If half of small-scale producers benefited from development interventions that focus on empowering women, it would significantly raise the incomes of an additional 58 million people and increase the resilience of an additional 235 million people compared with a gender mainstreaming approach.
