Like countless people across the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted rural women.
Their agricultural activities have been affected to a greater extent than those of men – which is particularly worrying, given that they were already at a disadvantage in accessing productive resources.
Yet, despite the difficulties they are facing, rural women are showing their resilience in the face of the crisis – and their work is proving crucial to preventing hunger in hard-hit areas.
Rural women are also facing many of the same challenges that other women all across the world are experiencing during the pandemic.
Generally, women are more likely than men to have lost their jobs, given that they are overrepresented in informal and insecure types of employment.
Lockdown measures, meant to keep populations safe from disease, can nevertheless be dangerous for women at risk of experiencing domestic violence.
Meanwhile, the dominance of men in decision-making processes is playing out in debates and decisions over COVID-19 responses across the globe, contributing to failures in many countries to protect women from the worst impacts of the pandemic.
And with family members spending more time at home, women are seeing their unpaid workloads increase – including taking on most of the care of sick family members.
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