Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Document Number: C22969
Notes:
Pages 27-53 in Luke Uka Uche (ed.), Mass communication democracy and civil society in Africa: international perspectives. Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO, Lagos, Nigeria. 557 pages.
International: International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 143 Document Number: C22046
Notes:
4 pages., Reviews "new studies reaffirming that empowering women is the key to ensuring food and nutrition security in the developing world. This brief brings together IFPRI's most recent research findings on gender and food security and offers proof to policymakers that reducing gender disparities promotes better food and nutrition security for all."
13 pages, HIV Aids has had a major impact on resource-limited African rural Sub-Saharan communities, especially upon women who typically experience greater gender inequity, have fewer assets and greater food insecurity and vulnerability. Coordinated interventions in crop productivity, nutrition, AIDS treatment, and livelihood security can have significant positive impacts on individuals and households; however their impact upon gender relations and social equity is unclear. Qualitative interviews and an integrative model of factors influencing women’s empowerment are used to examine this issue in four villages of the Miracle Project in Zambia and Malawi. Although some local agency and NGO programs existed in these villages prior to project inception, female respondents reported improvements in crop productivity and income, some initiation of new enterprises, improvement in ownership of assets and housing quality and access or re- access to kinship or community based mutual assistance networks from which they had been excluded. Consumption of the introduced quality protein maize and products from home processing of soyabeans were cited as improving household nutrition. Together with increased accessibility to retroviral drugs, women’s health has improved; levels of poverty and stigmatisation have reduced and allowed many to display an improved degree of empowerment.
