Check Against Delivery

Madam Chair,

Nowhere in the world, have men and women the same opportunities. Very often, women’s legal, social and economic rights are not the same as those of men. These rights are often linked to civil status. Women - whether single, married, divorced or widowed - must be ensured equal footing with men.

The UN Millennium Project pointed this out well: (and I quote) “One of the greatest barriers to human capital transition is the denial of basic human rights to a significant part of the population, and this applies broadly to women” (Unquote).

This is not only unfair for women. It is also wrong for societies. When the skills of the whole population are not fully used, we all loose.

Women’s empowerment is essential to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s). These goals have opened a new door. They direct us towards a holistic approach to poverty reduction.

Poverty is not gender neutral. Most poor people in the world are women. And most poor farmers are women. Still, it is these women who grow most of the food. Women are responsible for 60 to 80 percent of food production in developing countries.

Here in FAO, we should know this. We should also know that we must focus on women – the most important actors in the agricultural sector in the developing world.

But women do not have equal access to productive assets. In many countries, they do not have the legal rights to own the land they till. This means no ensured right to use the land. No way to inherit it. No way to register it. No way to borrow money to invest in it. No means to participate on equal terms where the important decisions are made.

This is a set of challenges that does not only affect poor women – often it affects poor people in general.

To fight poverty, we must expand the rule of law so that all citizens - rich or poor, men or women, rural or urban - will benefit. A key element is the formalisation of poor women and men’s right to property and other assets.

We must acknowledge and take into consideration the special situation of for example indigenous people. But for many poor people, formalisation will lead to inclusion and empowerment. It involves a number of economic, political and legal reforms. It involves building institutions that can implement them effectively.

That’s why Norway has helped launch a new “Commission for the Legal Empowerment of the Poor”. We have done so together with many partners, the UN, other countries and individuals.

The Commission is an independent, global initiative. It has broad support from a wide range of countries, such as Canada, Egypt, Guatemala, India, South Africa, Tanzania and the United Kingdom, as well as the other Nordic countries.

The Commission will develop an action-oriented agenda and identify key principles of empowerment. It will develop a tool kit for governments, including policy and strategy options. The former American Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and the Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto will be the co-chairs of this Commission. Several UN organizations will contribute to the Commission’s work. FAO’s involvement will be very important.

In my view, the new “Commission for the Legal Empowerment of the Poor” is an innovative approach to development. Legal empowerment means an integrated approach to development. Legal empowerment means inclusion. It means that rights must be respected for all citizens.

Mobilizing the poor is a noble agenda. And if we want to achieve the MDG's by 2015, the time is ripe.

Thank you.