THE DA highlights and recognizes the role of rural women in achieving food security and stabilizing rural economy.
AS women continue to contribute to nation building through developed rural economies, the Department of Agriculture (DA) once again leads the country in recognizing their important role in agriculture and food sufficiency.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), rural women comprise a quarter of the total world population and represent approximately 43 percent of the agriculture labor force.
In the Philippines, women farmers and fisherfolk can be found in the various segment of the value chain of agribusiness. They produce, process, and prepare food not only for their family, but for others as well, thereby giving them the primary responsibility of securing sustainable food supply.
It is for this reason that the DA has been actively pursuing activities that promote the empowerment of rural women under its Gender and Development (GAD) Program in accordance with Republic Act 9710 otherwise known as the Magna Carta of Women (MCW).
Through the Search for Outstanding Rural Women or Gawad Parangal sa Katangi-tanging Kababaihan sa Pagsasaka sa Kanayunan, an annual activity of the DA Gender and Development Focal Point System (DA GFPS), the DA highlights and recognizes the role of rural women in achieving food security and stabilizing rural economy. They are the food heroes who have shown excellence in their field of endeavor and made significant impacts in the rural areas.
The Search focuses attention to smallholder farmers/fishers in rural areas with high poverty incidence to determine how a rural woman overcomes the challenges not only as a female but as a female worker in the countryside. It also appraises the impact of each woman’s success in the lives of people in her community. Through these engagements, the government finds way to improve the delivery of necessary services and interventions in the poor areas of the country.
This year, the DA gives honor to the six exemplary rural women who serve as inspiration and models of empowerment to other women across the nation.
