SESSION 2Bridging the gender gap in food security and nutrition

35 FAO. (2023). The status of women in agrifood systems. Rome. (https://doi.org/10.4060/cc5343en).36 FAO. (2021). Consultation for the development of the CFS Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment

in the context of Food Security and Nutrition. Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition. Report of the online consultation No. 175 from 16.09.2021 to 30.11.2021. (https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cb9466en).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Aside from being an important source of employment for women around the world, agrifood systems are a greater source of livelihoods for women than for men in many countries. However, in all regions of the world, women have less access to food than men35 despite playing a key role in its production. At the same time women suffer more from malnutrition in all its forms – undernourishment, hunger, obesity, overweight and micronutrient deficiencies.36

Women tend to work in roles that are considered secondary and have worse workingconditions (irregular, informal, part-time, low-skilled, labour-intensive and therefore precarious) compared to men. They have a greater burden as unpaid caregivers, which limits their education and employment opportunities. The wages and productivity of women working in primary agricultural production are systematically lower than those of men. When they are involved in the non-farm segments of agrifood systems, they work in lower positions. Women's participation in export-oriented high value-added chains, and in entrepreneurship in agrifood systems, tends to be limited by discriminatory social standards and barriers to accessing knowledge, assets, resources and social networks.35

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