Food Security, Productivity, and Gender Inequality - The Oxford Topic of Food, Politics, and Society - page 271

Chapter 11
Food Security,
Productivity, and Gender
Inequality 1
Bina Agarwal
Introduction
Of the many global challenges we face today, perhaps the most significant and of the
longest duration is that of providing food security and eliminating hunger. This chal-
lenge is compounded by developments such as the rise and volatility of food prices; the
shift from foodcrops to biofuels in major food-exporting countries; the neglect of agri-
culture in many developing countries, especially in terms of investment in infrastruc-
ture; and the looming threat of climate change with its predicted adverse effects on food
production.
These developments are both cause for serious concern and an opportunity for
change, since there is now a renewed global interest in agriculture to reduce the con-
straints to economic growth and improve food security. There is also a growing recogni-
tion of the need to tap the potential of small farmers, a vast number of whom are women.
For sustainability, we need long-term efforts to increase production, stabilize food avail-
ability, and improve distribution. Here the role of women as farmers, as consumers, and
as family food managers, can prove pivotal.
Food security requires both the availability of adequate food and economic and
physical access to what is available. The quality of food (e.g., adequate micronutrients)
is also important. In each respect, women play a critical role. They are major food pro-
ducers and hence significant contributors to food availability. Their access to food has an
important bearing on their own and their family's food security. And nutritional quality
is of particular importance for women, given their special needs during pregnancy and
lactation.