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Disrupting the Global Food Systems towards Advancing Gender Equality, Human Rights and International Solidarity: The case of South Africa, Brazil, China and Mexico

  • Day 4: Dec 17 (UTC+8) 6:30 pm-8:00 pm

Inequality Movement

This session explores different areas of gender inequality within the food system, including access to markets, access to land and water, and access to finance, with a particular focus on the impact on rural women. Panelists will share case studies from South Africa, Brazil, China, and Mexico.

Speakers:
Sibulele Poswayo
Prof Pam Rajput
Dr Nthabiseng Moleko (Commission for Gender Equality)
Dr Fei-fei Cai

"Macroeconomic solutions are not reflective of the experiences of grassroots women. Their rights and claims cannot be denied." — Pam Rajput.

COVID-19 has undermined food security both directly, by disrupting food systems, and indirectly, through the impacts of lockdowns on household incomes and physical access to food. Furthermore, COVID-19 and responses to the pandemic could undermine food production, processing and marketing, but the most concerning impacts are on the demand side – economic and physical access to food.

The Inequality Movement analyses the impact of all this on rural women by pinpointing areas for governments and other actors to intervene in the food system (through effective and inclusive macroeconomic policy shifts), to protect the food security of households left vulnerable by COVID-19 and public responses to this global pandemic.

In particular, this session explored three main areas: inequalities in how women access markets within the food sector/systems; inequalities in how women access means of production like land and water; and inequalities in how women access finance in the form of loans and support for start-ups. Panelists shared case studies from South Africa, Brazil, China, and Mexico, and lessons learnt on how to fight for inclusive and gender-responsive macroeconomic policies in food systems. It concluded with recommendations on how we – as feminists – can create international solidarity in demanding that the global economy be designed to advance gender equality and human rights.

Arabic, Nepali Sign Language and Spanish interpretations are available.

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