ENERGY AND GENDER in rural sustainable development

Abstract

FAO is looking at ways in which increased attention to energy and gender linkages can help countries promote sustainable agricultural production and rural development, as well as work towards meeting the targets set out in the Millennium Development Goals. It is FAO’s view that increased access to energy sources in rural areas and the development of new bioenergy1 sources can contribute to achievement of the Millennium Development Goals relating to the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger , improvements in health, education, and environmental sustainability, as well as gender equality and the empowerment of women. FAO’s Committee on Agriculture has identified the great potential of bioenergy for supporting new rural infrastructure and employment opportunities, and has also recognized that an integrated multidisciplinary approach is needed for its new Bioenergy Programme to address the social and economic objectives set out in the MDGs. A focus on gender issues is particularly imp ortant in this context since many of the world’s poorest people are women living in rural areas in developing countries who are currently dependent on subsistence agriculture to feed their families, and who are disproportionately affected by the lack of modern fuels and power sources for farming, household maintenance and productive enterprises.