Press and News Empowering women and youth for Gender Equality and Social Inclusion in Agri-Food systems
At the CGIAR Strategy Dialogue during Science Week, experts spotlighted the urgent need for gender equality, youth empowerment, and inclusion to build resilient, equitable agri-food systems worldwide.
At the 2025 CGIAR Science Week, a dialogue unfolded around the crucial intersection of gender equality, youth, and social inclusion within agri-food systems. This conversation, hosted during the CGIAR Strategy Dialogue, brought together passionate leaders and innovators to reflect on how these themes are shaping the future of food systems.
The dialogue began with an urgent reminder from Dr. Ismahane Elouafi, who called attention to the critical challenge of achieving Sustainable Development Goal 5: gender equality.
“We are only five years away from the 2030 deadline, yet gender equality and the empowerment of women remain out of reach,” she said.
Her words cut through the room, emphasizing the severity of the situation and the gap that must be closed if we are to build truly resilient and inclusive agricultural systems.
Ismahane Elouafi
CGIAR Executive Managing DirectorWhile gender inequality is deeply entrenched, especially in low-income countries, where women often face significant barriers, ranging from limited access to land and finance to exclusion from decision-making processes.
“When women and marginalized groups are excluded, productivity drops, resilience weakens, and food systems become more vulnerable,” Ismahane explained. Yet, within this challenge lies a unique opportunity to transform the system.
“This is not about fixing the women farmers, but about changing the entire landscape around them,” she added, pointing to the importance of not just addressing women’s issues, but transforming the broader context of agri-food systems to be more inclusive for all.
The CGIAR Gender Equality and Inclusion Accelerator is spearheading efforts to tackle these systemic challenges by prioritizing gender-transformative approaches.
“Our focus is on ensuring that all farmers, regardless of gender, have equal access to the resources they need to improve food systems and feed the world,” Ismahane said, reinforcing the Accelerator's goal of building a level playing field for all.
This initiative is more than just a call for equity, it’s about creating a shift in the entire agricultural system to support inclusivity.
Nchanji Eileen Bogweh
Gender and Social Inclusion ExpertWhile technology plays a central role in addressing these issues, Eileen Nchanji emphasized the need for a more holistic approach to innovation; one that integrates the social dimension, often overlooked in traditional technology adoption.
“Technologies alone will not lead to widespread change unless we ensure there are systems in place to access finance and capacity-building opportunities,” Eileen remarked.
In her view, social innovation is the missing link in bridging the gap between technological advancements and widespread adoption, particularly for women farmers who often lack the collateral or financial resources to implement new innovations that could improve their livelihoods.
Through her work in Kenya, Ethiopia, and India, Eileen has seen firsthand the impact of combining social and technical innovations. By bringing together farmers, governments, private sector actors, and community leaders, CGIAR is fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration to create solutions that are both gender-responsive and climate-resilient. These bundled innovations (combining gender training, climate-smart agriculture, and nutrition education) are having tangible impacts on farmers' lives.
“We saw women empowerment increase, livelihoods improve, and adaptive capacities grow,” she shared, though she was quick to point out that context matters.
What works in one region may not apply in another, accentuating the importance of locally tailored interventions. Collaboration remains at the heart of scaling these solutions.
“We need partners to help us scale these innovations and bring them to more communities,” Eileen stressed, highlighting the importance of collective action in driving systemic change.
The session concluded with powerful remarks from Dr. Sandra Milach, who reflected on the critical role of evidence and leadership in moving the gender equality agenda forward.
“We need evidence to demonstrate the impact of gender-responsive interventions in food systems,” she stated.
But evidence alone won’t move the needle. She emphasized the importance of leadership, not just from women but from men as well.
“We need leaders who are committed to this agenda,” she said. “This is about building alliances with decision-makers at every level to ensure that gender equality is not an afterthought but a central part of the solution.”
Dr. Sandra also stressed the importance of policy and incentives in driving change.
“Policies and incentives are essential for driving change,” she said, noting that without the right support structures, even the best ideas will struggle to take root.
The session was a reminder of the work still to be done to ensure that gender equality, youth empowerment, and social inclusion are embedded into the very fabric of food systems globally. It also stressed the critical importance of partnerships in driving forward this agenda. As we move closer to the 2030 deadline, the work being done by CGIAR and its partners to foster inclusive, sustainable, and resilient food systems offers a path forward.
As Dr. Sandra concluded, “All we want is for women to have the choice of the food systems they want to see. They deserve the right to make those decisions.”
