Girls can drive economic growth and social stability; New Chicago Council report calls for increased investment in rural adolescent girls. 
Adolescent girls living in rural areas of the developing world have untapped potential to drive economic development and help meet the world’s future food supply needs, says a new report released by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Girls Grow: A Vital Force in Rural Economies identifies opportunities to empower rural girls to spur economic and social change in their families and communities. Catherine Bertini, 2003 World Food Prize Laureate, serves as the publication’s lead author and chair of the project that produced the report.

Adolescent girls must be a key part of successful agricultural and rural economic development strategies, as they are many of the world’s future farmers, rural leaders, decision makers, and mothers. Rural adolescent girls face a triple challenge due to their location, gender, and age.

The report calls on national governments and bilateral donors to provide services and opportunities that both improve girls’ lives and equip them to be successful economic contributors. Recommended actions include ensuring girls complete secondary school, increasing access to vocational training, eliminating barriers girls face in the work place, building girls’ capacity as decision makers, enhancing health services information and delivery to girls in rural areas, and keeping girls safe.

Special attention is paid to how girls uniquely contribute to agriculture. Women in the developing world make up 43 percent of the agricultural labor force. Girls help with these responsibilities and handle, with their mothers, virtually all domestic chores, including fetching water and carrying firewood.

The report recommends that adolescent girls be incorporated into country-wide agricultural development plans, have more opportunities to receive agricultural skill building and participate in rural peer groups, and have greater access to agricultural inputs and credit. Donors are also encouraged to dedicate climate change adaptation and mitigation monies targeting natural resource management to programs including girls.

“If the world is to meet the challenge of feeding 9 billion people by 2050, we must invest in the human capital of those with the potential to transform agricultural economies – adolescent girls,” said Bertini. “Already, they carry much of families’ burdens; with opportunity, they can be major change agents for rural communities and nations. As nations are rediscovering the importance of agricultural development, we want to ensure that the new definition of rural economies’ strengths includes the critical role of adolescent girls.”

The report’s conclusions and recommendations were developed through consultations with an advisory group of noted leaders and experts in agriculture, gender, demography, business, and development from government, academia, the private sector, international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations.

The developing world’s 283 million rural adolescent girls face unique challenges. Many live in poverty, are involved in agriculture, carry heavy work burdens, have limited access to health services, don’t complete school, and marry early. However, it is proven that strengthening women brings benefits to families, economies, and societies.

If women in agriculture were given the same access to productive assets as men, national agricultural output would increase by 2.5-4 percent and poverty would be reduced by 12-17 percent. Interventions during adolescence can often change the trajectory of a girl’s life. In spite of this, less than two cents of every development dollar goes to adolescent girls.
"Now is the time invest in rural adolescent girls,” says Marshall M. Bouton, president, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs. “The international community is renewing its commitments to agricultural development, and increasingly women, who make up almost half of the world’s agricultural workers, are benefiting. This study finds, however, that progress will only be sustainable if investments are also made in the world’s future farmers, entrepreneurs, and managers – rural adolescent girls.”

For the full report, see - http://www.thechicagocouncil.org/UserFiles/File/GlobalAgDevelopment/Report/GirlsGrowReportFinal_v9.pdf  (Large file - 12.36 MB)

For the executive summary, see - http://www.thechicagocouncil.org/UserFiles/File/GlobalAgDevelopment/Report/GirlsGrowReport_ThruExecSum_v9.pdf

 

We’ve produced some ‘hard questions’ that you can use as a basis for voicing rural concerns during ‘meet the candidates’ events, and as a basis for developing your own questions.

We’ve also produced (and printed) a manifesto (which we can supply copies of). This will be useful post-election as well, when we begin to advocate for RWNZ issues with our newly elected representatives. Click here to see our Manifesto and hard questions page on our website, or contact Belinda enquiries@ruralwomen.org.nz to receive printed copies.

Interested in what the main parties see as the key issues for NZ agriculture? View this interview by Country 99TV.

The Rural Women NZ Manifesto for 2011-2014 is now available! This manifesto is published by Rural Women NZ to advise the Government of the issues that create disparities for rural communities, and to offer solutions.

Download a copy here or contact national office to get a hard copy posted to you today - email enquiries@ruralwomen.org.nz or phone 04 473 5524.

With the election fast approaching you may also find our 'Hard Questions' helpful when meeting with candidates in your area. Our National Council invited the committees of the four priority areas of health, land issues, social issues, and education to create some hard questions to help kick start things. You may wish to use these questions but we hope they will also help you to formulate your own questions.

Download a copy here.

What are the big concerns affecting your community? What are your local candidates’ or political party’s stance on these issues? Can candidates ensure your concerns will be addressed through positive legislative changes?

To find out, we need to ask hard questions on big issues.

  

RWNZ National Council invited the committees of the four priority areas of health, land issues, social issues, and education to start the ball rolling with some sample hard questions. You may wish to use these questions but we hope they will also help you to formulate your own questions when you meet the candidates in your area.

Download our Hard Questions here.

You can also have your say by joining in the conversation on our Forum here

Please contact Noeline Holt at national office on 04 473 5524 or by email noeline.holt@ruralwomen.org.nz  if you would like any advice/support on issues of concern to you. This is your opportunity to ensure candidates know the issues and have some answers.

Find out more about the upcoming election here  http://www.elections.org.nz/

We have received a warm 'thank you' letter from Christchurch Women's Refuge for all the practical support from Rural Women NZ members around the country. 

Donations of clothing, petrol vouchers, hand-knitted items, food and more have been sent by RWNZ groups in Glenorchy, Rakaia, Henley, Mid Canterbury, Mid East Provincial Southland, Motunui Beach, Piako Provincial, Thames Valley, Mangatoro, Tokanui, Otara, Waikawa and Tokarahi.

Christchurch Women's Refuge says "It is lovely to be taken under the wing of an organisation like [Rural Women New Zealand], which can mobilise many women to support other women and their families at an extremely difficult time.  We are very glad to be the conduit through which you have helped so many families."

Christchurch Women's Refuge says rural calls for support initially increased by 40% and incidents of family violence in North Canterbury have doubled since the February earthquake.  They say this is not only because of the increased stress, but the changing demographics of Canterbury as families leave Christchurch city for outlying areas.

 

Environment Minister Nick Smith has announced the criteria and assessment panel for the new fund to help councils and communities clean-up nationally significant water bodies that have been polluted.  It’s called the Fresh Start for Fresh Water Clean Up Fund, which will have $9 million available in the coming year.  For more information go to More information, including criteria for the fund and application forms are available at: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/issues/water/freshwater/fresh-start-for-fresh-water/cleanup-fund.html   

Telecom’s CDMA network will close in July 2012, however because CDMA phones often work where GSM phones don’t, people living or working in rural areas have tended to hang on to their CDMAs.  Now they’ll have to switch, and Consumer Magazine recently tested 17 new mobiles with a focus on finding models that work well in country areas. The three best in their test for reception were the Telecom R54, Telecom R109 and Nokia 6120 Classic. The best smartphone was the Apple iPhone 4.  The phones are all compatible with XT as well as with the Vodafone and 2degrees networks.

Sue Saunders, our former national councillor, will be on tvCentral’s Central News with Katrina Mckinlay on Tuesday 20 September at 7.30pm (primetime) and 10.30pm, talking about our School Bus Safety campaign for the introduction of 20kmh active signs.

TVCentral is available to view on the UHF band and Freeview HD – please note this means you cannot tune in if you have a Sky decoder – you will need to switch this off first.

Rural Women New Zealand applauds Transport Minister Steven Joyce’s decision to accept our recommendation and extend the 20kmh speed limit past school buses to 20 seconds before and after a school bus has stopped if the bus is displaying a flashing sign.

However Rural Women New Zealand now urges the Government to take the next step and approve an active school bus sign that includes the 20kmh speed limit.

“Our research shows that many New Zealand drivers, as well as tourists, are unaware of the 20kmh limit and are failing to slow down, making our children very vulnerable, especially on rural roads where there are no footpaths,” says RWNZ health spokesperson, Kerry Maw.

Current approved school bus signs include one of children crossing with flashing ‘wig wag’ lights, but there is no approved sign that includes the 20kmh speed limit.

Rural Women New Zealand has worked extensively with traffic engineering researchers who have developed an active 20kmh school bus sign, but the sign awaits approval from the NZ Transport Agency.

Testing of the prototype sign has shown it to be very effective in slowing drivers. Overseas research also supports the use of clear speed limit signage.

Rural communities have begun to raise funds for active 20kmh signs for their local school buses, and keenly await their approval and production.

“The number of children killed and injured after getting off school buses has not improved for 30 years, and behind every statistic is a devastated family,” says Mrs Maw.

“It is time we focused on every possible solution to ensure our school children are kept safe.”

Article - Ashburton Guardian 6 September 2011

Article - Manawatu Standard 10 September 2011

One year on from the first Canterbury earthquake, we declared Friday 2 September aftersocks day and had a big sales drive to raise yet more funds for the Christchurch Mayoral Fund.  

In Taranaki Shirley Read and friends sold aftersocks at the Taranaki District Council offices in the morning, before selling at the Central City Mall in the afternoon.  Sales were hot!

A vibrant group of women from Top of the South came together last weekend at St Arnaud for a leadership training programme, sponsored by Landcorp. The weather was chilly (minus 7 degrees on Sunday morning!) but inside the lovely new St Arnaud hall the atmosphere was warm and buzzing!

We heard from inspiring leaders John Ayling (chair of Access) and Suzanne Win, as well as presentations from Liz Evans and Jackie Edkins about RWNZ, and thought-provoking discussions led by Heather Sorenson, Sue Higgins and Michelle Reilly.

Hilarious after dinner entertainment was provided by bush poet and balladeer, Roger Lusby.

We have further Leadership Experience events sponsored by Landcorp coming up. On Monday/Tuesday 11/12 July in Region 6 (Waikato/Taranaki) the first of these will be held at the Kingsgate Hotel in Hamilton. Top of the North Island (Region 7) and Lower North Island (Region 4) are in the planning stages for Leadership Experience events later in the year.