The issue:

It is time for a paradigm shift as new strategies and approaches are essential to empower women to become leaders and innovators within the global food system. Making up 43% of the global agricultural workforce, women are essential drivers in the global food systems- as smallholder producers, processors, service providers, and consumers. However, they face significant discrimination regarding land and livestock ownership, equal pay, participation in decision-making processes and structures and access to credit and financial services. Moreover, women are disproportionately affected by hunger, malnutrition, poverty and livelihood insecurity, especially in vulnerable communities across the world.  

Despite the significant increase in entrepreneurial opportunities and innovation-centric approaches aimed at engaging women entrepreneurs and women-led entities in agri-business, barriers such as replicability, scalability, and market access are preventing scale up. Collaborative partnerships are needed to bridge the last mile in deploying gender-responsive, agri-entrepreneurial solutions, thereby placing gender equality and women's empowerment at the forefront of scaling industry innovations to effectively address food system challenges. 

Objective:

This session aims to: 

• Highlight the importance of advancing equal representation of women in agri-business and in decision making structures and processes. It will also showcase the significant contributions of women as leaders and innovators.  

• Identify and address gender-based gaps and challenges that women face in agro-industries, and explore ways to enhance market access for women-led and women-owned micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).  

• Empower women entrepreneurs by providing a platform to share best practices and strategies, particularly focusing on women-owned MSMEs. Additionally, the discussion will emphasize the role of women in promoting sustainable industrial practices and environmental stewardship. 

Ultimately, this event aligns with the broader mission of UNIDO and its partners to foster an inclusive and sustainable industrial landscape that benefits everyone and leaves no one behind. The event also aligns with the system-wide gender equality acceleration plan launched by the United Nations Secretary-General in March 2024, recognizing the centrality of gender responsiveness and inclusion in industry development. By addressing gender disparities in agro-industries globally, UNIDO aims to empower women and contribute to the achievement of inclusive and sustainable industrial development, and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to gender equality (SDG 5), industry, innovation, and infrastructure (SDG 9), and partnerships (SDG 17). 

Key guiding questions:

1. What are the main challenges encountered by women and women entrepreneurs in agri-business? 

2. What effective strategies, policies, or institutions are needed to overcome these challenges and enhance the role of women as leaders and innovators in the agri-food system? 

3. How can collaborative partnerships among various stakeholders support the scaling and impact of women-led and -owned agri-business solutions? 

4. What are some good practices for making the agri-food industry more accessible and appealing to women entrepreneurs? 

5. How can women in agri-business drive sustainable practices and environmental stewardship, and how can these contributions be scaled? 

Expected outcomes:

• Identify and begin to address key challenges that limit entrepreneurial opportunities for women and women-led MSMEs in the agri-food sector and propose actionable solutions. 

• Highlight strategies to increase market access for women entrepreneurs and women-led MSMEs in the agri-food sector. 

• Facilitate the creation of collaborative partnerships among stakeholders to pilot and scale innovative solutions for women’s empowerment in the agri-food sector. 

Session format and structure:

This event will feature a high-level opening followed by an interactive panel discussion focused on Q&A from the audience. The opening will set the stage by highlighting the importance of women's leadership and innovation in agri-business. The panel discussion will then bring together voices from the private sector, innovation accelerators, women entrepreneurs, and producer cooperatives. 

Opening remarks

Moderator

Panelists