Women are the nucleus of our global food system – but their value is undermined by the patriarchy

We must change the very system that has led to women owning less land than men, writes Jemimah Njuki

Women from the Murle ethnic group carry bags of sorghum during a food distribution by United Nations World Food Programme in Gumuruk, South Sudan, 10 June. (AFP via Getty Images)

As the world’s attention falls on redesigning food systems to deliver safe and healthy food, livelihoods, and environments for all, it is equally important to ensure that the human rights of half of its producers and consumers – women – are not left behind.

Access to safe and nutritious food is a human right. We must then ask ourselves why the rights of hundreds of millions of women who work within food systems – including their right to equal acknowledgement, access to resources, and the opportunity for empowerment – have long been limited by patriarchal systems.

Women are the nucleus of our global food system, often taking responsibility for household nutrition and are also directly involved in raising livestock and tending to crops. And this is not even counted in the burden of unpaid care, of which women carry out two-thirds worldwide, three times more than men.