Gender inequalities are widespread in agric – Send-Ghana

Send-Ghana, a non-governmental orgnisation, says gender inequalities are widespread in agriculture and rural employment.

It said those inequalities manifested in limited access to inputs and services including land, livestock, labour, extension and limited financial services and mechanization.

Mr. Adamu Mukaila, Programme Officer of Send-Ghana, said the contribution of smallholder women farmers to agricultural production, processing, marketing and household food security and nutrition often go unrecognized.

He said women were the key actors in Ghanaian agriculture, constituting more than half the agricultural labour force and producing 70 per cent of Ghana’s food requirement.

Mr. Mukaila said these at a day’s Policy Dialogue on Gender and Smallholder Agriculture Development forum organised in Wa for key stakeholders in agriculture.

The forum was to draw the attention of the government of the specific challenges facing smallholder women farmers and the urgent need to address those constraints

Mr. Mukaila said while women played very important roles in the agriculture value chain, they were faced with gender – specific constraints thereby reducing their productivity and limiting their contributions to agricultural production and economic growth.

He said the demand to place gender equity and women’s empowerment at the heart of agricultural policy and programming, research and capacity development must be tackled with all the seriousness it deserved to help maximise food production.

Mr Mukaila said there was no doubt that gender equality enhances productivity and improved other development outcomes, including prospects for future generations.

“There has been consensus that gender equality transforms not only households but societies. It is a development objective in its own right”, he said.

Mr. Mukaila said in line with Send-Ghana’s mission to promote good governance and equality for women and men in Ghana, it had mobilised and built the capacities of women smallholder farmers in the Upper West, Upper East and Northern Regions under its Smallholder Agriculture Development Programme.

Those women had been supported to undertake sustained campaign for increased investment into agriculture, improved agricultural productivity, profitability and sustainability.