The effect of climate change could in many areas of the world "diminish considerably the progress we have made so far in securing gender equality,” said Iceland’s Minister of the Environment, Ms Thorunn Sveinbjarnardóttir, at an FAO event marking International Women’s Day.

With higher temperatures, unpredictable rainfall, and a potential sea level rise, entailing more frequent or more intense disasters, no part of the world will be safe from the impacts of the changing climate.

FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf has announced the appointment of two women to top positions in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

Her Majesty Queen Sofia of Spain was today awarded the Ceres Medal, coined in her honour by FAO in recognition of her efforts to raise the living standards of rural women in developing countries.

More than any other group, female-headed households in Ethiopia’s Southern Tigray region – one of the poorest in the world – have little access to tree and plant resources, which are vital for their livelihoods.