At the World Food Summit in Rome one year later, the Heads of State and Government and Representatives of 185 countries committed themselves to foster equitable participation of women and men, and to adopt legislation guaranteeing women access to and control of productive resources.
Women make up a substantial majority of people working on the land in developing countries.
Today, rural women's vital contribution to social and economic development is well-documented. Now we need to move from knowledge to action, especially by removing the constraints they so often face, and facilitating their even greater contribution to food production and food security. Today, five years after Beijing, the Parliaments of Hungary, Tunisia and Ghana are among those who have passed National Action Plans for the Integration of Rural Women in Development, as inspired and promoted by the FAO Plan of Action for Women in Development. When taken into account by rural planners and policy-makers, women can produce tangible and sustainable improvements in the quality of rural life at the household, community and national levels. Only then will there be a chance of achieving sustainable agricultural development, with the aim of increasing productivity and overall production, securing the preservation of natural resources, increased incomes, new jobs, improvement in levels of household food security and adequate levels of nutrition.