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Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls 2014, para. 42cc
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions:] [Realizing women's and girls' full enjoyment of all human rights]: Recognize, resource and support programmes that advance gender equality and women's rights in all areas of economic activities, including fisheries and aquaculture, to address food security and nutrition, and meaningfully facilitate women's contributions to small-scale and artisan fisheries and aquaculture, commercial fisheries, and the use and care of oceans and seas;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Human rights criteria for making contract farming and other business models inclusive of small-scale farmers 2011, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- Women have less access to contract farming than men. A study found that in the Kenyan horticulture export industry, women comprised fewer than 10 per cent of contracted farmers, and in a sample of 59 contract farmers for French beans exported from Senegal, only one was a woman. The ability of women to benefit from contract farming is determined by their rights over land and by the power relationships both within households or, when the contract is negotiated through representatives of the community or the farmers' organizations, within those groups. Indeed, even where most of the work is in fact performed by the wife and other family members, it is not unusual for the contract to be signed by the husband, as head of the household, as is seen in sugar contract farming in South Africa or in vegetable contract farming in the Indian Punjab. In addition, studies suggest that women lose control over decision-making when crops are produced for cash rather than for local consumption. While women decide about the use of food produced for self-consumption, they do not decide how the income of the household is spent. Therefore, unless the framework for contract farming respects women's rights and is gender sensitive, it will undermine gender equality. Research done on bean contract farming in Kenya shows, for instance, that while women performed most of the work, they received a limited portion of the revenues from the contract. In addition, where they did receive cash, they were expected to contribute to household expenditures even when this would have been the husband's responsibility. Strengthening the position of women is not only a matter of guaranteeing the right to equality of treatment, but also a means of improving productivity, since women receiving a greater proportion of the crop income will have a greater incentive to increase production. Moreover, household food security and children's health, nutrition and education all gain from improved income for women, in comparison to the gains that result from improved income for men. The more women decide on how to spend household income, the more it is usually spent on children's needs; a child's chance of survival increases by 20 per cent when the mother controls the household budget (see A/HRC/13/32, para. 58).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
The right to an adequate diet: the agriculture-food-health nexus 2012, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Second, the focus on pregnant and lactating women and infants in some recent nutrition initiatives, while understandable, should not lessen the need to address the nutritional needs of others, including children, women who are not pregnant or lactating, adolescents and older persons. The right to adequate food, which includes adequate nutrition, is a universal right guaranteed to all. This pleads in favour of broad-based national strategies for the realization of the right to food that address the full range of factors causing malnutrition, rather than narrowly focused initiatives that address the specific needs of a child's development between conception and the second birthday.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Infants
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
The right to an adequate diet: the agriculture-food-health nexus 2012, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- Third, interventions aimed at improving nutrition and targeting pregnant or lactating women and children under 2 years old, while vital, do not substitute for addressing the structural causes of undernutrition or inadequate diets. The Special Rapporteur noted previously that chief among these structural causes are inequitable food systems that are not sufficiently inclusive of the poorest, small-scale farmers and that do not reduce rural poverty; and the priority given to monocropping of certain staples over more diverse farming systems that would help to ensure more adequate diets. The violations of women's rights, gender inequality and the lack of women's empowerment are another major factor explaining poor nutritional outcomes. Improving women's access to productive resources, allowing women to make decisions regarding the household budget and protecting women from pressure, including economic pressure, to renounce optimal breastfeeding practices would contribute significantly to positive nutritional outcomes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
The right to an adequate diet: the agriculture-food-health nexus 2012, para. 35
- Paragraph text
- The impacts of increasingly globalized food chains and the uniformization of diets across the globe have disparate impacts across population groups. As a country transitions towards higher income levels, the burden of overweight and obesity shifts. The poorest segment of the population is at low risk of obesity in poor countries, but in upper-middle income developing economies (with a gross national product per capita of over about US$ 2,500) and in high-income countries, it is the poorest who are most negatively affected. In high-income countries, while the poor bear a disproportionate burden of overweight or obesity, women are particularly at risk because their incomes are on average lower than those of men, and because men in the low-income group often are employed on tasks that are physically demanding and require large expenses of energy. Overweight or obese women tend to give birth to children who themselves tend to be overweight or obese, resulting in lower productivity and discrimination. Thus, socio-economic disadvantage is perpetuated across generations by the channel of overweight or obesity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Women’s right and the right to food 2013, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Involving women in the design, implementation and assessment of all these policies, could therefore have deeply transformative effects on how we conceive of the role of small-scale farming itself. This is why participation matters: it is to ensure that women have real choices. The strengthening of women's cooperatives or encouraging group farming by women's collectives are also important for that reason. Not only should women be able to overcome the obstacles that obstruct their ability to be as productive as men, they should also be able to redefine the priorities of the small-scale farming system, of which they are becoming the main actors.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur will examine the impact of climate change and environmental degradation as a growing source of food shortages and food insecurity, particularly in countries that are faced with imminent risks due to economic, geographic and climatic conditions. In this context, she will also address the need to review international food systems, as a means of improving sustainable consumption and reducing food waste. In so doing, the Special Rapporteur will engage with the specific policy recommendations of the post-2015 sustainable development goals concerning the eradication of poverty and hunger, food security and the empowerment of women. The adoption of those goals is currently being negotiated by the United Nations, civil society and the relevant organizations with respect to their precise language.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Investing in rural women has been shown to increase productivity significantly and reduce hunger and malnutrition.8 According to FAO, women are responsible for 50 per cent of world food production, mainly for family consumption. The majority of rural women are "invisible" field workers on family plots. As a result, they have no recognized independent status as farmers and their work is considered as secondary both in the family and in society. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 15 per cent of landholders are women and they account for less than 10 per cent of credit and 7 per cent of extension services. According to estimates, policies that address gender inequalities could, conservatively, increase yields on women's farms by 2.5 to 4 per cent. Those statistics emphasize women's key role in agriculture, not only in ensuring the well-being of individuals, families and rural communities, but also in relation to overall economic productivity and sustainable development.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- Article 14 of the Convention on the All Forms of Elimination of Discrimination against Women should be used as a guiding tool by States. In the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security, endorsed by the Committee on World Food Security in May 2012, it is noted that gender equality is at the core of all reform efforts. The Voluntary Tenure Guidelines also contain special provisions for improving gender equality in both formal and customary systems, for instance through amending discriminatory inheritance and property laws. The Special Rapporteur will review State policies with reference to the Guidelines, highlighting examples of good practices that encourage access to land for women and other vulnerable groups.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Women in many parts of the world are confronted with other discriminatory policies and societal norms that prevent them from accessing their fundamental right to adequate food and nutrition. Limited access to education and adequate public health care, as well as early marriage and pregnancy, domestic violence and unequal employment opportunities impose restrictions on women's mobility, decision-making power and control over the family income. Migration as a result of natural disasters, climate change and conflict has also had a disproportionate effect on women, particularly those living in rural areas and among the urban poor.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Movement
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The fact that women are also considered as the primary caregivers, in both rural and urban settings, adds an extra dimension to their responsibilities within the household. While rural women often shoulder the burden of a heavy workload in addition to their care duties, urban poor woman face different challenges relating to assuring adequate food and nutrition for their family. For a range of economic reasons, poor urban women are increasingly relying on less nutritious processed foods. The Special Rapporteur intends to work with relevant stakeholders to address concerns related to the food issues facing different countries as a result of a dietary transition from traditional diets to processed foods high in fat and sugar, including the concerns addressed by her predecessor (see A/HRC/19/59).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- The proposed sustainable development goals should adopt a rights-based approach and include mechanisms for establishing a transparent participatory process in decision-making, involving people directly affected by hunger, extreme poverty and injustice. Vulnerable groups, in particular, must be afforded the same rights as others in that process. Efforts must also be made to ensure that accountability mechanisms are in place to allow victims and organizations representing them to hold Governments to account for failure to comply with their international responsibilities in relation to the right to food. Women's equal access to land and resources should also be included, along with specific targets to ensure asset redistribution among different social groups in relation to the use of land, the oceans, credit, technology and intellectual and cultural property.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- The Global Strategic Framework for Food Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security must also be used as a key reference tool for the implementation of effective models of governance concerning food, agriculture and nutrition for States, intergovernmental actors and the corporate private sector. Although it is not a legally binding document, it constitutes a commitment for countries to adopt its principles, options and policy base, as suited to their local needs and circumstances. The document includes provision for the rights of women and children in relation to food security and recognizes the central role played by smallholder farmers, agricultural workers, artisanal fisher folk, pastoralists and indigenous peoples. The primacy of food security and nutrition as a basic human right is the primary responsibility of the State and should be given priority over any other government policy.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Right to food and nutrition 2016, para. 96
- Paragraph text
- While certain States have taken encouraging steps, most national systems to combat malnutrition are fragmented and lack effective action, evaluation and accountability mechanisms. It is imperative that responses move away from isolated interventions and "medicalized" approaches to fighting malnutrition. In line with their obligations under the international human rights system, States must acknowledge the underlying causes of malnutrition and develop multisectoral approaches to coordinate nutrition policies with health, housing, water and sanitation, social protection, poverty and inequality reduction initiatives. Moreover, it must be recognized that, to effectively combat malnutrition, women's rights should be at the forefront.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- Oxfam researchers found that adaptation projects aimed at women created under Burkina Faso's National Action Programme for Adaptation (NAPA) sought to diversity the ways that women can generate income to offset income lost by harvests damaged by climate change. In order to rectify these consequences, individuals and organizations need to be better educated on the different vulnerabilities that men and women face in disasters, and local women's organizations need to be consulted in order to understand region-specific contexts. Moreover, such attempts could have ancillary positive effects, as developing credit systems to aid families during times of famine, strengthening women's organizations that promote adaptation measures, and addressing larger issues could prevent gender inequality.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- In all adaptation projects women should be granted access to the same level of technology and financing as men. This will help women change agricultural practices as well as preserve livelihoods during times of drought. Addressing issues of resource management and land ownership will also improve women's chances against climate change. Ultimately, communities must take a "bottom-up" approach in order to accurately understand local customs and to incorporate local knowledge; applying a model that relies upon opinions from international institutions or outside groups will not be as effective.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Girls and women suffer from discrimination in relation to their right to food at all stages in life. In many countries, females receive less food than their male partners, due to a lower social status. In extreme cases, a preference for male children may lead to female infanticide, including by deprivation of food. Some mothers stop breastfeeding girls prematurely in order to try and get pregnant with a male, which could increase risks of infection and other risks if impure water is used with formula. Similar discrimination applies to older women who tend to be less literate than older men, in many parts of the world; this limits women's employability, participation and voice in community development activities and makes them less likely to be able to provide for themselves.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- Furthermore, girls and adolescent women induced by tradition or forced into child marriage and adolescent pregnancy, suffer the consequences of a high work burden and deprivation of their child rights, including their right to adequate nutrition and education. They are required to perform heavy amounts of domestic work, and are responsible for raising children while still children themselves. Adolescent pregnancy is a typical outcome of child marriage and complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the second cause of death for 15-19 year-old girls globally.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- India has led the way, not only at the regional level, but also globally, in terms of developing jurisprudence on economic, social and cultural rights. Its Constitution provides a strong legal framework for the protection and promotion of human rights, with article 47 noting that "States shall regard the raising of the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the improvement of public health as among its primary duties". It has also recently joined a select group of countries that are legally obliged to ensure the distribution of subsidized food grains to its people. With the historic passing of its National Food Security Act in September 2013, India has pledged to provide heavily subsidized food grains to approximately two thirds of its population. The National Food Security Act will amount to the largest food security programme in the world, and aims to reduce malnutrition and improve food security. It also promotes gender-based rights and social inclusion of women, and includes provision for social monitoring and complaint mechanisms. While the Act has received criticism, particularly owing to its failure to address the nutritional aspect, and for placing too much emphasis on public distribution without tackling the root causes of poverty and hunger, the Special Rapporteur commends Indian efforts to address chronic malnutrition, and encourages India to work with relevant stakeholders to tackle any potential gaps that may prevent this innovative approach from achieving its full potential
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Women’s right and the right to food 2013, para. 39
- Paragraph text
- A human rights-based strategy to address gender discrimination against women includes four complementary requirements. It must relieve women of the burdens of household chores; it must be empowering and challenge the existing division of roles; it must systematically aim at taking into account gender in existing food security strategies; and, as regards governance, it must be part of a multisectoral and multi-year effort, including independent monitoring of progress towards certain targets.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- Notwithstanding the legal framework designed to protect them, women experience poverty and hunger at disproportionate levels. Institutionalized gender discrimination and violence still impose barriers that prevent women from enjoying their economic, social and cultural rights and specifically the right to adequate food and nutrition, and the status of women and girls has not substantially improved, despite recurrent calls for the inclusion of a gender perspective to development programs and to social policies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Health
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Conclusion On Children At Risk 2007, para. (h) ix
- Paragraph text
- [Further recommends that States, UNHCR and other relevant agencies and partners undertake the following non-exhaustive prevention, response and solution measures in order to address specific wider environmental or individual risks factors:] Make all efforts to ensure integrated nutrition and health interventions and access to adequate food through measures that address the root causes of food insecurity and malnutrition, including by enhancing families' enjoyment of self-reliance, age and gender-sensitive food distribution systems, targeted nutrition programmes for pregnant women and children during their critical first years of development, and by providing treatment for malnourished children;
- Body
- Executive Committee of the Programme of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
- Document type
- ExCom Conclusion
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2007
Paragraph
The right to water (Art. 11 and 12) 2002, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- The Committee notes the importance of ensuring sustainable access to water resources for agriculture to realize the right to adequate food (see General Comment No.12 (1999)). Attention should be given to ensuring that disadvantaged and marginalized farmers, including women farmers, have equitable access to water and water management systems, including sustainable rain harvesting and irrigation technology. Taking note of the duty in article 1, paragraph 2, of the Covenant, which provides that a people may not "be deprived of its means of subsistence", States parties should ensure that there is adequate access to water for subsistence farming and for securing the livelihoods of indigenous peoples.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2002
Paragraph
The right of the child to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health 2013, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Measures for fulfilling States' obligations to ensure access to nutritionally adequate, culturally appropriate and safe food and to combat malnutrition will need to be adopted according to the specific context. Effective direct nutrition interventions for pregnant women include addressing anaemia and folic acid and iodine deficiency and providing calcium supplementation. Prevention and management of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, should be ensured for all women of reproductive age to benefit their health and ensure healthy foetal and infant development.
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of the Child
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Infants
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Acroecology and the right to food 2011, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- Specific, targeted schemes should ensure that women are empowered and encouraged to participate in this construction of knowledge. Culturally-sensitive participatory initiatives with female project staff and all-female working groups, and an increase in locally-recruited female agricultural extension staff and village motivators facing fewer cultural and language barriers, should counterbalance the greater access that men have to formal sources of agricultural knowledge. It is a source of concern to the Special Rapporteur that, while women face a number of specific obstacles (poor access to capital and land, the double burden of work in their productive and family roles, and low participation in decision-making), gender issues are incorporated into less than 10 per cent of development assistance in agriculture, and women farmers receive only 5 per cent of agricultural extension services worldwide. In principle, agroecology can benefit women most, because it is they who encounter most difficulties in accessing external inputs or subsidies. But their ability to benefit should not be treated as automatic; it requires that affirmative action directed specifically towards women be taken.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Fisheries and the right to food 2012, para. 50d
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur has previously described the role that human rights impact assessments of trade and investment agreements can play in allowing countries to discharge their human rights obligations (see A/HRC/19/59/Add.5). Trade and access agreements in fisheries provide another such illustration. The above assessment of the potential opportunities and risks of such agreements (see paras. 29-32) may serve to identify the questions that should be asked in any impact assessment before the conclusion of an agreement by the coastal State. These are, for example:] Are measures in place to ensure that export-oriented fishing creates decent work opportunities to ensure an adequate standard of living? Overall, will the agreement increase the incomes of the poorest and most marginalized groups within the coastal communities, especially women?
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
The right to an adequate diet: the agriculture-food-health nexus 2012, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- Assessments of these various nutrition promotion initiatives and the projects under the umbrella of the SUN initiative fall outside the scope of the present report. The increasing international profile of nutrition should be welcomed. It is positive too that SUN acknowledges the need for efforts to scale up nutrition to be driven by national authorities with a cross-sectoral approach, and that it brings together commitment and support from developing country Governments, donors, civil society, development agencies and the private sector. In providing assistance however, these actors must not overlook the entitlements that have been established under international law for women, children, minorities, refugees and internally displaced persons, and other groups that may be subjected to marginalization and discrimination. The Special Rapporteur, while welcoming the progress made through SUN, calls for an explicit alignment of its initiatives with human rights, including the right to food. A number of observations should be made in this regard.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Assessing a decade of progress on the right to food 2013, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- Other examples include the parallel vigilance committees set up in 1992 by women from low-income neighbourhoods in Mumbai to monitor the fair price shops under the Public Distribution System; the public expenditure tracking surveys in Ghana, Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania to identify diversion of funds in the health and education sectors; citizens' report cards in India, the Philippines and a range of African countries, through which citizens rate the quality of the public services they are provided; community score cards in the Gambia, Kenya and Malawi, which combine report cards with public meetings between communities and public service providers; participatory audits in the Philippines or as conducted by Javanese farmers in Indonesia. Beyond post hoc accountability, participation may extend to the design of policies and the ranking of budgetary priorities: in Brazil, following the example of Porto Alegre, a number of cities have elaborated participatory budgets.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Women’s right and the right to food 2013, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- A number of the issues that in practice are of particular concern to women could be addressed in principle through effective policies and laws, and collective bargaining. These include equality of opportunity policies, equal pay for work of equal value, maternity leave and benefits, child care issues, reproductive health services. However, apart from the general problems related to unionization on farms, male-dominated unions do not always pay sufficient attention to issues that matter especially to women. Male union representatives may fail to consider the gender implications of apparently neutral issues for collective bargaining, including how wages are determined, leave, overtime, or bonus systems since these often in reality impact on women and men differently. To address this problem, the International Union of Food and Agricultural Workers (IUF) has for example produced a gender-equality guide and aims at a 40 per cent representation of women on all its committees.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Women’s right and the right to food 2013, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- A first requirement is breaking the cycle of discrimination against women. This does not mean simply removing discriminatory provisions in the law, particularly as regards access to land or other productive resources, but it also requires that the structural causes of de facto discrimination be addressed. In particular, measures should be taken to relieve women of the burden imposed on them by the duties they assume in the "care" economy, and to improve their economic opportunities by better access to education and employment. Older women are particularly at risk of food insecurity as the cumulative effect of discrimination in accessing employment tends to leave older women with disproportionately lower (or no) incomes and pensions in later life; yet older women are expected to take care of other, more dependent members of the household.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2013
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