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EDITING WIKIPEDIA ASSIGNMENT – GENDER AND FOOD SECURITY

First of all, considering the how crucial the “gender and food security” issue is for women particularly in developing countries, we decided to make this section as a separate page. We plan to give a hyperlink and a short summary to the “gender and food security” sub-section in the existing “food security” article.

The existing “food security” article is too long to bring attention to “gender and food security” subsection. In addition, when we review the talk page of the article, we realized that there are some projections to edit the complete article and to shorten the “gender and food security” sub-section, which is quite extensive in comparison to the entire article. We have already mentioned our intent to edit the “gender and food security” sub-section and make it as a separate page to the talk page.

According to the FAO, the widely accepted World Food Summit (1996) definition reinforces the multidimensional nature of food security and includes food access, availability, food use and stability. In the existing article, we realized an excessive focus on “availability” and other elements are quite under-developed.

In line with the recent changes in the article, we decided to take these 4 elements as our departure point and structure the article as follows. (We are currently in the process of creating more striking and relevant sub-headlines) On the other hand, we realized that the existing subsection of “gender and food security” mainly relies on liberal perspective; therefore, we plan to bring attention other perspectives.

1. Availability— women as food producers: These include access to land; access to inputs, technology, and services; and access to markets.

2. Access – women as food consumers: These include access to employment and fair work conditions, unpaid work, social and economic programs such as cash transfer programs, credit schemes, public initiatives.

3. Utilization – women as food managers in households: These include women’s nutritional status as an input to child nutrition and girls, biased nutritional distribution within households. (There is a need to consider the overlap with the “women” section of the malnutrition article)

4. Stability – women affected by exogenous shocks: These include financial crises, climate change, increase in food prices. While elaborating these sub-sections of our article, we are planning to address to global policy responses as well as regional and national initiatives.

References


 * ADB, FAO. 2013. “Gender Equality and Food Security: Women’s Empowerment as a Tool against Hunger”
 * Agnes R. Quisumbing, Lawrence Haddad, Ruth Meinzen-Dick & Lynn R. Brown. 1998. “Gender Issues for Food Security in Developing Countries: Implications for Project Design and Implementation”. Canadian Journal of Development Studies
 * Agarwal, Bina. 2012. “Food Security, Productivity and Gender Inequality”. https://www.escholar.manchester.ac.uk/api/datastream?publicationPid=uk-ac-man-scw:163107&datastreamId=FULL-TEXT.PDF.
 * Ajani, Olubunmi Idowu Yetunde. 2009. „Gender dimensions of agriculture, poverty, nutrition and food security in Nigeria“, IFPRI
 * De Schutter, Olivier. "Report submitted by the Special Rapporteur on the right to food" Human Rights Council, Twenty-second session 24 December 2012
 * International Center for Research on Women, "Women, Food Security and Agriculture in a Global Market Place"
 * MDG Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Progress Chart 2010
 * Mehra, R. and M. Hill Rojas. 2008. “Women, food security and agriculture in a global market place”
 * Parvin, Gulsan Ara. 2012. “Role of Microfinance Institutions to Enhance Food Security in the Climate Change Context: Gender based analysis of rural poor community of Bangladesh”, CGIAR
 * Quisumbing et al. 1995. “Women: The Key to Food Security”, The International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C., August 1995
 * Rao, Nitya. 2006. “Land Rights, gender equality and household food security: Exploring the conceptual links in the case of India”, Food Policy, Volume 31, Issue 2, April 2006, Pages 180–193
 * Sarapura, Silvia. “Innovating Agriculture through Gender Lenses” http://www.academia.edu/254531/Innovating_Agriculture_through_Gender_Lenses
 * Spieldoch, A. 2007. “A row to hoe: the gender impact of trade liberalization on our food system, agricultural markets and women’s human rights”, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Geneva

Procedural Matter Introduction: one paragraph, link to food safety / Availability: Mehreen / Access: Seul / Utilization: Burcu / Stability: Caro

=First Draft (Dec. 1st)=

Access
The World Food Summit of 1996 defined access to food as to have "sufficient resources to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet." It can be analyzed at national level – concerning the country's food access from the global market, at households level – concerning household member's ability to produce their own food or to purchase food from the market, and at individual level – concerning individual's ability to meet their nutritional needs. Research of the link between gender and food access has been conducted mostly at households level.

Women and Household's Food Access
Women's access to food is closely connected to households' food access because they are typically responsible for food supply in households. Women can gain the access to food through producing it for their own consumption or purchasing it with income. Income is either generated from market activity or granted by redistributive mechanisms in the form of government's social protection measure or community's solidarity. Many studies conducted during 1980s suggest that women typically spend a higher portion of their income on food and health care for children than men do. A study in Côte d'Ivoire found that for men, it needs eleven times bigger income of women to improve children's nutrition to the same level at which women achieve. Furthermore, a study demonstrated that poorer women-headed households often succeed in providing more nutritional food for their children than men-headed households. Studies explain such difference in income spending between men and women with several hypothesis. One of them is that societal and cultural norms may impose on women the role of ensuring adequate share of food among household members. When a study interviewed people living near Lake Victoria, women typically considered their children as the first or second greatest expenditure, while men did not view them as a cost. The other hypothesis is that different income flow of women from men causes different transaction costs. According to a study in low income countries, men typically contribute to large and one-off payments while women spend for daily household expenditure.

Constraints to Food Access
Gendered role of women creates physical or, more frequently, economical constraints to food access. Physical access to food can be limited by less mobility and greater time constraint of women than those of men. Economic access to food can be limited by reduced autonomy and purchasing power of women compared to men.

Physical Access to Food
Women are less mobile and more time constrained due to gender-based division of labor in child care and household responsibility and because of sociocultural norms. In sub-Saharan Africa, women spend large amount of time to transport supplies of domestic use – such as fuelwood and water – and to travel between home and field for domestic task. It constrains women to be engaged into the market.

Economic Access to Food
Women's economic autonomy and purchasing power is limited compared to men. Firstly, women have weak bargaining position within family. A study found that in fishery villages of lake Victoria, men did not reveal their income to women, while they expected women to do so. Many women were compelled to hide their income, if they earn, in order to avoid that husbands withdraw all financial assistance to the household. Secondly, women have less income-generating opportunity in the market because of limited access to educational and employment opportunities. Women tend to have lower educational status than men, and therefore more difficulties in finding formal wage employment. A study found that in Kampala, most women involved in urban farming have only primary education, or none at all. It determines kinds of their work – few of them participate in the formal sector and many are housewives, or farm in their backyards, or trade foodstuff by the roadsides. When women are self-employed in subsistence farming and meeting household needs, it is not counted as an economic activity in the market. Moreover, when women are employed on or off farm, they are likely to be located in periphery segment of operation and work in inadequate conditions because they have few options in the employment market. As a consequence, women may have not enough income to purchase food. The analysis of poverty measures of individuals in men-headed and women-headed household in rural Ghana and Bangladesh shows that more persons in female-headed households are below poverty line. It leads to underinvestment by parents in girls, making a vicious cycle. A study found that in Ethiopia where girls have faced historical discrimination girls were more likely to be food insecure than boys. This is because when food stress happens to a household, adult members buffer younger members in a preferential way for boys over girls. Furthermore, until they benefit from improved employment opportunities of girls, parents would have little incentive to educate girls because of their dim prospect.

=Second Draft (Dec. 18th) - Please grade this=

Access
The World Food Summit of 1996 defined access to food as to have "sufficient resources to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet." It can be analyzed at national level – concerning the country's food access from the global market, at households level – concerning household member's ability to produce their own food or to purchase food from the market, and at individual level – concerning individual's ability to meet their nutritional needs. Most research of the nexus between gender and food access has been conducted at households level and under the perception of gender as women.

Women and household's food access
Women's access to food is closely connected to households' food access because they are typically responsible for food supply in households. Women can gain the access to food through producing it for their own consumption or purchasing it with income. Income is either generated from market activity or granted by redistributive mechanisms in the form of government's social protection measure or community's solidarity. Many studies conducted during 1980s suggest that women typically spend a higher portion of their income on food and health care for children than men do. For example, a study in Côte d'Ivoire found that for men, it needs eleven times bigger income of women to improve children's nutrition to the same level at which women achieve. Another study demonstrated that poorer women-headed households often succeed in providing more nutritional food for their children than men-headed households. Studies explain such difference in income spending between men and women with several hypothesis. One of them is that societal and cultural norms may impose on women the role of ensuring adequate share of food among household members. When a study interviewed people living near Lake Victoria, women typically considered their children as the first or second greatest expenditure, while men did not view them as a cost. Another hypothesis is that women may prefer to spend more on children's daily needs as they share more time with them. The other hypothesis is that different income flow of women from men causes different transaction costs. According to a study, men typically contribute to large and one-off payments while women spend for daily household expenditure.

Constraints to food access
Food access by women can be constrained physically, or more frequently economically due to a gendered role of women. Moreover, the gendered role of women can create sociocultural constraints to food access. These constraints are interrelated with each other. For example, sociocultural norms toward women can limit women's mobility, imposing physical constraints, whereas physical constraints can hinder women to be engaged into the market, deteriorating their economic access to food.

Physical Access to Food
Women are less mobile and more time-constrained due to both gender-based division of labor in household and sociocultural norms. While men are generally responsible only for income-generating activities, women are in charge of not only childcare but also time-consuming domestic activities. In sub-Saharan Africa, women spend large amount of time to transport supplies of domestic use – such as fuelwood and water – and to travel between home and field for domestic task.

Economic Access to Food
Women have less decision-making power in household. Moreover, they have less chances for income-generating activities in the market. An analysis of poverty measures in rural Ghana and Bangladesh showed that more persons in female-headed households are below poverty line. The inferior position of women in and outside household is interconnected because if women do not have economically constructed better alternative to stay with their husbands, they will be unlikely to make a voice against husbands.
 * Limited Control over Resources in Household - Women have weak economic autonomy in household as they are attributed smaller amount of household income compared to men. In a study of fishery villages of lake Victoria, men did not reveal their income to women, while they expected women to do so. Many women were compelled to hide their income, if they earn, in order to avoid that husbands withdraw all financial assistance to the household. Apart from material resources, women's own time can be under control of other household members. Purdah, a custom of women seclusion in some countries, is an extreme case of women's inability to control the way of spending their time.
 * Limited Education Opportunities - Women have limited access to educational opportunities. Women tend to have lower educational status than men, and therefore more difficulties in finding formal wage employment. A study found that in Kampala, most women involved in urban farming have only primary education, or none at all. It determines kinds of their work – few of them participate in the formal sector and many are housewives, or farm in their backyards, or trade foodstuff by the roadsides.
 * Limited Employment Opportunities - Women have limited access to employment opportunities. When women are self-employed in subsistence farming and meeting household needs, it is not counted as an economic activity in the market. Moreover, when women are employed on or off farm, they are likely to be located in periphery segment of operation and work in inadequate conditions because they have few options in the employment market. As a consequence, women may have not enough income to purchase food.
 * Less Investment in Girls - Limitations which women face in the market leads to underinvestment by parents in girls, making a vicious cycle. Until they benefit from improved employment opportunities of girls, parents would have little incentive to educate girls because of their dim prospect.

Socio-cultural Access to Food
Customs and culture often dictate differential roles, privileges, and life options for women and men, especially in favor of the latter. A study found that in Ethiopia where girls have faced historical discrimination girls were more likely to be food insecure than boys. This is because when food stress happens to a household, adult members buffer younger members in a preferential way for boys over girls.

=Group Article - Please grade them for common contribution=

Gender and food security
Gender inequality both leads to and is a result of food insecurity. According to estimates women and girls make up 60% of the world's chronically hungry and little progress has been made in ensuring the equal right to food for women enshrined in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Women face discrimination both in education and employment opportunities and within the household, where their bargaining power is lower. On the other hand, gender equality is described as instrumental to ending malnutrition and hunger. Women tend to be responsible for food preparation and childcare within the family and are more likely to be spent their income on food and their children’s needs. Women also play an important role in food production, processing, distribution and marketing. They often work as unpaid family workers, are involved in subsistence farming and represent about 43% of the agricultural labor force in developing countries, varying from 20% in Latin America to 50% in Eastern and Southeastern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. However, women face discrimination in access to land, credit, technologies, finance and other services. Empirical studies suggest that if women had the same access to productive resources as men, women could boost their yields by 20–30%; raising the overall agricultural output in developing countries by 2.5 to 4%. While those are rough estimates, the significant positive impact of closing the gender gap on agricultural productivity cannot be denied. The gendered aspects of food security are visible along the four pillars of food security: availability, access, utilization and stability, as defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization.

Under the part of "Availability"

Access to credit, technology, education, and government services
Women have limited access to rural extension services and technology. Women's success in food security in most countries revolves around their access to equal resources as men, including the rights to land ownership, unequal wages, unequal access to credit, technology, education, markets, and government services. The right to food can be hindered by problems such as increased demand, price volatility, climate change characterized by land degradation and water scarcity, competition for land, urbanization, and increased poverty and vulnerability. Individual decisions regarding livelihoods, family planning, migration, agricultural production and political participation can have varying outcomes regarding food security which have repercussions beyond the individual's control.

On a macroeconomic level, cuts in government spending and investment in rural development and agricultural policies, production incentives, price stabilization measures, and subsidies for small-scale producers have directly decreased the viability of women's agricultural projects. The privatization of services like health, water, and sanitation have indirectly hindered rural women and children from escaping poverty traps which constrain their ability to sustainably produce food for themselves and for market. The Center for Women's Global Leadership writes that "trade liberalization policies have increased their work burden and undermined their right to food."

Gender and food security
Gender inequality both leads to and results in food insecurity. According to estimates women and girls make up 60% of the world's chronical hunger and little progress has been made in ensuring the equal right to food for women enshrined in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Women face discrimination both in education and employment opportunities and within the household, where their bargaining power is lower. On the other hand, gender equality is described as instrumental in ending malnutrition and hunger. Women tend to be responsible for food preparation and childcare within the family and are more likely to be spent their income on food and their children’s needs. Women also play an important role in food production, processing, distribution and marketing. They often work as unpaid family workers, are involved in subsistence farming and represent about 43% of the agricultural labor force in developing countries, varying from 20% in Latin America to 50% in Eastern and Southeastern Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. However, women face discrimination in access to land, credit, technologies, finance and other services. Empirical studies suggest that if women had the same access to productive resources as men, women could boost their yields by 20–30%; raising the overall agricultural output in developing countries by 2.5 to 4%. While those are rough estimates, the significant positive impact of closing the gender gap on agricultural productivity cannot be denied. The gendered aspects of food security are visible along the four pillars of food security: availability, access, utilization and stability, as defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization.

Under the part of "Availability"

Access to technology, training, and infrastructure
A gendered role of women hinders access to technology, agricultural training, and rural infrastructure. Women's success in food security in most countries revolves around their reach to equal resources as men in aforementioned sectors. Women's limited access to technology resulted in the failure to address women's time constraints to agricultural activities. Moreover, agricultural training marginalizes women as they are normally conceived as farmwives rather than farmers. Rural infrastructure includes transport, energy, information and communication technologies. Women's access to infrastructure eases their burden of agricultural and domestic activities as well as encourages their participation in farming. However, privatization of infrastructure services hindered rural women and children from escaping poverty traps which constrain their ability to sustainably produce food for themselves and for market. The Center for Women's Global Leadership writes that "trade liberalization policies have increased their work burden and undermined their right to food."

Notes

References