Agricultural yields could increase by a third if female farmers had equivalent access to land, tools and finance as their male peers, according to the European Union’s commissioner for international cooperation and development. Speaking to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Neven Mimica said that boosting yields in this way would cause 150 million fewer people to go hungry. Of those experiencing chronic hunger, 60% are female. The report also found that, while women have made significant gains in agricultural productivity, they still earn less than men on average. ; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Mimica warned that the gender gap in agriculture must be closed before climate change traps rural women in “a downward spiral”.
Agricultural yields could increase by a third if female farmers had equivalent access to land, tools and finance as their male peers, according to the European Union’s commissioner for international cooperation and development. Speaking to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Neven Mimica said that boosting yields in this way would cause 150 million fewer people to go hungry. Of those experiencing chronic hunger, 60% are female. The report also found that, while women have made significant gains in agricultural productivity, they still earn less than men on average. Mimica warned that the gender gap in agriculture must be closed before climate change traps rural women in “a downward spiral”.