ÀcoraLocated in the southeast corner of Peru, nearly 3,800 kilometers above sea level, is one of the Peruvian regions which has been the most affected by climate change-agricultural production and biodiversity in danger in addition to the worsening of food insecurity.
“It was not like that before, the climate changed a lot,” said Pascaala Pari, head of the Sumaq Chuyma association in Ácora.
All over the world, farmers like Ms. Pari, who are already faced with a series of intersectional challenges, work tirelessly to guarantee their livelihoods despite an increasingly untenable climate situation.
“” Women in particular support the burden of food insecurity as traditional caregivers that intensifies during climatic crises“Said Bochola Sara Arero, a young girl from the World Food Forum, on an accompaniment event During the current UN High -level political forum on sustainable development on Monday.
Cross objectives
The forum in New York was summoned to discuss the Sustainable development objectivesAdopted in 2015 to promote the global development of current and future generations.
“” [The forum] will be a major way to assess how we do with the critical questions of sustainability and to achieve greater prosperity on a global scaleSaid Bob Rae, President of the Economic and Social Council (Ecosoc), at a press conference for correspondents in New York on Tuesday.
With only 18% of these objectives internationally on the right track to be achieved by 2030, the Secretary General António Guterres called for an urgent action and a supported multilateralism to fill this gap.
Mr. Guterres also said that this forum is a unique opportunity to discuss the intersection between various objectives, including the intersection between gender equality and climate change.
A bipolar climate
Last year in Ácora, facing a climate that oscillated between drought and torrential rains was almost impossible for women who counted on the country.
Cultures would not grow and agrobiodiversity was threatened. In a country where 17.6 million people already experience food insecurity, this double threat has the potential to wreak havoc on means of subsistence.
In response, Ms. Pari and other women in Ácora have formed seed banks. Not only organizations and seed banks preserve indigenous agrobiodiversity, but they also help maintain women’s livelihoods in the region.
“Our cultures were in danger of extinction, but now people are harvesting again and we are changing this,” said Fanny Ninaraqui, chief of Ayruas Carumas Association.
Seeds that are not planted can be exchanged or swapped with other owners of seed banks. More than 125 varieties of native crops have now been preserved in the region.
“I am satisfied with my little seed bank … now I have all kinds of quinoa: black, red, white. This supports me economically because I preserve and sell my products in the local markets, ”said Ms. Pari.
Aymara communities in Ácora work to recover and keep their agrobiodiversity.
Once closed, the doors open for farmers
In addition to climatic challenges, farmers are also faced with a lack of legal rights. More specifically, they often have no titles on their land.
According to the secretary general Sustainable development reportPosted on Monday, 58% of countries with available data lacked sufficient protection for women’s land rights.
“Women’s land rights are fundamental for the voice and the agency of women, the means of subsistence and well-being and resilience as well as for wider development results,” said Seemin Qayum, political advisor at United Nations.
The in -depth report also noted that less than half of women had secure land rights, men being twice as likely to have land acts and other protected property rights. [1]
Experts claim that insufficient legal protections have not only a negative impact on economic results for women, but they have also implemented the needs and votes of women in the development of policies. Consequently, it is essential to institute legal protections which officially recognize women as farmers.
“When you are recognized as a farmer, a world of possibilities, a world of resources – representation and rights opportunities – become available.
Another method implemented is the Warus Rehabiwaru in Thunco: an old agricultural technique with raised channels and beds to manage droughts and floods.
Beyond legal protections
Although legal land rights are essential, they are not enough in themselves to empower rural women.
“Initiatives that aim to modify discriminatory social standards and institutions are also necessary,” said Clara Park, senior official of the food and agricultural organization (Fao).
Women in Ácora recognize that it is not only climate change that has a negative impact on their livelihood – they are also struggling with unequal social standards.
“When you are young and a woman, someone always tries to limit your progress,” said Ninaraqui.
In organizations Ácora, international and civil society, including the United Nations Development Program (Predict), have worked to help women establish their seed banks and make sure these women have the capacity to manage them in the long term.
“I can direct, I can teach what I have learned, now I think I have this capacity,” said Ms. Pari.
Intergenerational knowledge
Women like Ms. Pari and Ms. Ninaraqui are part of the indigenous community Aymara in Ácora. For them, seed banks are a form of innovation that allows them to rely on indigenous knowledge concerning agrobiodiversity.
“We recover the seeds of the time of our grandparents,” said Ms. Pari.
And as they save these seeds, Ms. Pari said they also thought in the future.
“Today, I would say more women to continue, not to be discouraged by what others think and take the initiative like me,” said Ms. Pari.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
