Gender proofing template for agriculture
The Gender Proofing Template for Agriculture, developed within the GRASS CEILING Project provides a practical framework to ensure that agricultural and rural policies effectively integrate gender equality considerations. Building on insights from benchmarking EU and Member State policy documents, it identifies common gender biases and offers targeted measures to promote equality structured around a set of goals.
Explore the template
Improve the quality of data at EU and Member State level
- Review the quality of your gender disaggregated data. Is it sufficient to allow you to effectively gender proof agricultural policies?
- If not, please demonstrate how this issue will be resolved.
To increase the percentage of land owned by women
- Target of 50% new entrants to agriculture being women in 2050.
- Succession planning drives that advocate for gender equality.
- Incentives, such as additional supports for women, and relief on inheritance tax if the heir is a woman.
- Run primary and secondary school campaigns.
- Ensure Future Growth Loan Schemes supporting new entrants to buy land have favourable provisions for women.
- Provide incentives to ensure farms are registered in the names of both spouses.
To increase women’s digital literacy in agriculture
- Women’s digital literacy is poorer than men’s. What initiatives are addressing this issue in your agricultural policy?
To reduce pension gaps for women on farms
- In Ireland for example, 13.4% of women own farms, but 71 thousand women work on farms. Do we have sufficient data on their pension entitlements as farm workers?
- Make it mandatory for pension provisions to be made for all people working on the farm.
- Provide State support for pension provisions for small farm holdings.
Increase women’s access to farm training
- Ensure timings do not interfere with family and caring responsibilities.
- Provide creche facilities.
- Ensure women peer to peer learning opportunities exist.
Ensure gender fair distribution of farm income supports
- Undertake gender budgeting – understand where women receive support.
- Adjust accordingly, for example, we know that in Ireland the number of women registered as organic producers is double that of landowners. Ensure organic farming is generously supported.
- Ensure that supports are made available to the different types and size of farms that women operate.
- Ensure that supports targeted at women are actually available to women.
Increase women’s representation in farming organisations
- Policy consultations with farming organisations require that the farming organisation group meeting policy makers includes 40% women.
Consideration of senior civil servants with responsibility for implementation of these policies and gender balance
- During GRASS CEILING, we heard that often senior civil servants responsible for implementation of the National CAP Plans are almost all men. The gender breakdown of senior civil servants administering agricultural policies must be considered and addressed.
Consultation and monitoring of measures proposed
- Gender experts should be employed to advise Ministries of Agriculture on how to progress gender equality.
- Women’s farming groups should be consulted on proposed measures and asked to advise on best strategies.