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The Persistence of Hunger in South Asia
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Key Issue 6: Gender Discrimination

The persistence of social conditions that enforce the status quo is the biggest obstacle to achieving the end of hunger in South Asia. One of the most deeply entrenched conditions in the world is the subjugation, marginalization and disempowerment of women — which is worst in South Asia

Women are key to the end of hunger

The extent to which women are free to make decisions affecting their lives may be the key to the future, not only of the poor countries but of the richer ones too. As mothers; producers or suppliers of food, fuel and water; traders and manufacturers; political and community leaders, women are at the center of the process of change.
–Dr. Nafis Sadik, 1989, head of United Nations Fund for Population Activities

  • The status of women in South Asia is linked to the nexus of issues related to the persistence of hunger.

  • As mothers, women's well-being is critical to the development of children into healthy, productive adults.

  • As producers and leaders, women contribute to ending hunger in South Asia, but are often not acknowledged for these contributions.

  • Income earned by women benefits the family, since women tend to spend their income on food and child nutrition.

  • A full understanding of women’s key role in society is critical to making progress towards the end of hunger.

 
 
See unit 4 in July for an in-depth analysis of the condition of women in South Asia.

 

<-- Natural Disasters The Hunger Project Online Briefing Program
The Persistence of Hunger in South Asia
Page 18 of 29		 Democracy -->