Left Out and Left Behind: Ignoring Women Will Prevent Us from Solving the Hunger Crisis

| November 9, 2020

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CARE International released a report earlier this year that includes insights from an analysis of how well nearly 75 global, regional, and national reports, strategies, and statements on the COVID-19-induced hunger crisis address the reality of women and girls and gender inequality. In summary, few addressed the realities of women and girls.

The report states that, “Despite the many barriers they face, women and girls are instrumental to food systems and are already leading the charge to meet COVID-19-related challenges. Addressing gender inequalities will help deconstruct the barriers these women face, boosting productivity, promoting good nutrition, and leading to better outcomes for women, girls, and their communities.”

To address the hunger pandemic and its disproportionate impacts on women and girls, the report makes a number of recommendations, including:

  • Governments should immediately scale up gender-responsive social safety nets and minimize disruptions to agriculture and markets with a specific focus and measurable targets on women food producers and female-headed households.
  • All donors, UN agencies, and governments should publicly commit that all funding supports gender equality and women’s and girls’ empowerment, and at least half of food and nutrition security funding support women and girls directly.
  • All donors, UN agencies, and governments should support much-needed transformations in food systems; most importantly, to recognize women and girls as leaders in food systems and to ensure that they have equal rights and equal access to crucial resources as producers and consumers.

Read the full report : https://insights.careinternational.org.uk/publications/left-out-and-left-behind-ignoring-women-will-prevent-us-from-solving-the-hunger-crisis