National Strategy on Women in Agriculture (2015–2020).

The National Strategy on Women in Agriculture is a sectoral national strategy of Afghanistan covering the period of 2015–2020. The Strategy will reinforce the position of the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) as a leader in promoting women’s empowerment in the agricultural development. Output 2.3 focuses on their empowerment through improved food security and nutrition. The Strategy will address the issues affecting women’s roles and contribution as they emerge with changing times for the following four reasons: a) Women’s inequalities in access to and control over resources are undermining an inclusive development of the sector, b) Differences in outcomes based on women and men’s different roles and status result in the perpetuation of women being trapped in low yields, low investment and low return, c) Secondary role of women and unequal relations between women and men relations affect food security and household welfare which are critical indicators of human development, d) Gender equality is a basic human right, one that has value in and of itself.
The rationale of the Strategy seeks to: provide clear objectives, comprehensive policy guidance complemented by a National Action Plan and a focus on outcomes (rather than processes) for enhancing women’s empowerment in the agricultural sector; increase the capacity of MAIL leadership and staff and other stakeholders to engage in, and be accountable for, the principles and practice of gender equality in the agricultural sector; deepen the impact of MAIL’s operations – in terms of sustainability – through the systematic consideration of gender issues at all stages of the programme and project cycle; improve systems for more effective learning and reporting, both to inform decision-makers and also for effective advocacy and policy dialogue. Afghanistan faces a severe problem of poor nutrition and food insecurity. More than 69% of the poor are food insecure and with Afghan women as the key providers of food security of their households, there is a fundamental linkage between gender and food security, poverty and food insecurity.
Vision: MAIL becomes the center of professional excellence in undertaking agricultural development initiatives from the perspective of women and men. MAIL is committed to equality between women and men in the agricultural sector which is defined as its primary responsibility by anchoring women and men’s needs and interests equally across all programmes and projects as well as within MAIL. The overarching goal of the strategy is to promote inclusive agricultural development for women’s empowerment.
The Strategic Objectives will strengthen women’s role and visibility in the agricultural sector in the long-term in close alignment with the National Action Plan for Women in Afghanistan (NAPWA) and other polices of MAIL as well as other key sectoral policies of other social sector ministries: Women’s Affairs, Health, Education and Higher Education, Rural Rehabilitation and Development and Commerce, Trade and Industries. The three Strategic Objectives of the Strategy are as follows: 1. Institutional Level: institutional strengthening and individual capacity development of MAIL and concerned stakeholders. 2. Programmatic Level: deepening technical support by MAIL through its different initiatives/programmes/projects for strengthening women’s role in agriculture. 3. Impact Level: assessment of impact of the different interventions of MAIL for knowledge management & documentation of best practices & lessons learned.