Political Advisor Gunnar Dalen

High-level consultation on rural women and information

[ Gender equality in policies and planning: nature and scope][ Review of the draft strategy for action]

Gender equality in policies and planning: nature and scope

Technical panel on the identification of the information requirements of policy makers and planners, and the link between food security and accurate information on rural women

Thank you, Madam Chairperson.

We have learnt this morning that gender equality is a global question of crucial importance for agriculture, food security and the rural areas in the time to come.

I would like to focus on a situation which scarcely has been discussed so far, and I address it to the panel.

In Norway we very much want to ensure equal opportunities, also within the agricultural sector. Our objective is to make the countryside and remote areas attractive for both women and men to live and work in. We intend to stop the migration trend from rural areas, where the population share of women is continuously diminishing. 65 per cent of all girls leave the rural districts to study in towns, and only 15 per cent return to the place where they grew up.

The situation in Norwegian agriculture is, as far as gender equality is concerned, as follows:

• there is a long way to go before we see an acceptable number of girls take over farms,
• in the period 1983 – 1992 17 per cent of all farms on the market were taken over by women, but still only 10 % of all farms belongs to women.
• 25% of all labour input is carried out by women, but women receive only 9 per cent of all state support available,
• few women are represented in organisations,

We would like to share our experiences with other countries. Let me mention one example: Technological development is important to increase productivity and output. Nevertheless, don’t let technological progress make women leave agriculture. That is a part of what happened in Norway. Make sure that women will continue to produce food by securing their right to own farm land, to run farm land , to get access to education and training, and by empowering women to engage fully in the work of farmers` organisations.

At an earlier development stage Norway failed to ensure women`s influence in agriculture, and it takes such a long time to succeed in the reinclusion of women. And, I would like to underline, that the losing part is agriculture and rural communities – not the rural women, many of whom work and thrive in towns and cities.

Thank you Madam Chairperson.

Review of the draft strategy for action

General debate on the Draft Strategy for Action: Statements by Delegations

Thank you, Madam Chairperson.

When formulating policies meeting the challenges of food security, FAO is, at the same time, correctly addressing women’s needs as a point of departure.

Equality is a key to sustainable development through the empowerment of people, both men and women. The role of women in achieving food security cannot be overestimated. In many societies women are the main producers of food. Women are also the the main providers of meals, nutritional information and in assuring improved nutritional status within households.

Therefore, women must be given equal access to education, land, and other productive assets, as well as credit.

The Norwegian Government fully supports the FAO Strategy for Action and its main objectives. We clearly see the importance of providing information about human resources in general, and women in particular, to succeed in outlining the right policy approaches. And equally important, to enhance the status of rural women by documenting the impact of their contribution to economic, social and environmental development. This matter is of great importance to women themselves, as well as to society as a whole.

Also in Norway, within the field of agricultural production, there is a lack of genderspecific information. A greater share of the findings of agricultural censuses and population surveys must be disaggregated by sex. Futhermore, disaggregation of existing data will probably not be sufficient. In addition, new quantitative and qualitative variables must probably be added to obtain an overall view of the situation of rural communities.

Before the end of 1999, the Norwegian Government intends to present a White Book on agricultural policies to the Norwegian Parliament. In this White Book the Government will outline policies aiming at equal opportunities for men and women within agriculture. The main objective of these policies is: ”Women and men are to have genuine equal opportunities in making a living within conventional farming and other business lines attached to farming”.

To see if we succeed in the implementation of such policies, and to make it possible to measure development trends in the years ahead, we believe it necessary to make use of selected sets of indicators. Such a set of indicators could be:

• share of agricultural properties transferred to women
• share of female members and representatives of councils and organisations
• share of man years within agriculture carried out by women

There still is a long way to go until we reach the abovementioned goal in my country. Even if

we have an Allodial Act.. This act gives relatives preference with respect to farm property and priority to the eldest child, since 1974 also when the firstborn is a girl. Research, however, shows that parents encourage boys far more than girls to exercise their allodial rights and take over the farm. We experience that conservative attitudes impede gender equality. It is a challenge for our policies to motivate girls to make concious choices and utilize their allodial rights.

In the last years several measures have been initiated to promote the recruitment of young people and especially women.

A supplementary annual direct payment for farmers below the age of 35 has been introduced. As an incentive female farmers get 25 per cent more than male farmers.

We have measures to increase the welfare of farmers in case of pregnancy and birth, in case of illness and to allow more spare time. In the fields of education and training new efforts will be made, e.g.the introduction of entrepreneurial training for young farmers.

Agricultural authorities and organisations are engaged in existing networks promoting equal opportunities for women, and mentor-adept programmes have been introduced to empower women for leadership.

We also have established the Rural Development Support Scheme. The scheme is an incentive to farm family members to increase their incomes by adding alternative activities to the traditional ones. The scheme offers grants and loans for diversification purposes as well as for investments within conventional farming. Funding is available for both female and male applicants, but women are given priority. Also, in certain cases, support intensity is higher for female than for male applicants.

Finally, Madam Chairperson, I would like to welcome FAOs intention to establish a programme for the development of standards for the collection of data and the determination of indicators. Norway would be interested in contributing to this work, when the time comes to test, adjust and evaluate the mentioned programme.

Thank you, Madam Chairperson.