Bangladesh Attaches importance to gender equality as reflected in our Constitution

Sharke Chaman Khan:“Bangladesh Attaches importance to gender equality as reflected in our Constitution, and we have placed high priority on the economic empowerment of women, as reflected in the National Policy on Women’s Advancement (1997) and soon to be ratified National Policy on Women and Development 2011. The National Food Policy Plan of Action 2008-15, the National Strategy for Accelerated Poverty Reduction-2 and the National Agricultural Policy, which is currently underway, also address gender equality and empowerment”, said Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. A. K. Abdul Momen while he was moderating the event of launching of FAO’s report on the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) 2010-11 “Women in Agriculture: Closing the gender gap for development” on 17th March at the UN-HQ.

The State of Food and Agriculture 2010-11(SOFA) calculates the costs of gender inequality for society and nations. For example, it shows that if women farmers had the same access to productive resources as men farmers, world hunger would be reduced by 100 to 150 million people. It makes a strong “Business case” for addressing gender issues in agriculture and rural employment. Women make significant contributions to the rural economy of all developing country regions. Their roles vary widely by country and context, yet one finding is strikingly consistent: women in all regions face gender-related constraints that reduce their productivity and impose real costs on society.

Director of Gender, Equity and Rural Employment Division, FAO, Marcela Villarreal; Economist of  FAO and Chief Editor of SOFA,  Terri Raney Senior; Director of Gender Team, Bureau for Development Policy UNDP,  Winnie Byanyima and Deputy Director of UN Women  Joanne Sandler spoke on the occasion while Director, FAO,  H. Ratsifandrihamanana welcome the audience.An interactive question answer session was conducted at the end of the event.