The UN International Year
Every year, the United Nations selects several topics to raise global awareness and highlight how they support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The UN has designated 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer, as stated in UN resolution A/RES/78/279.
The aim: to draw attention to the challenges women in agriculture and the food sector face, and to celebrate their essential contributions to food security, rural life, and gender equality.
Who Is a Woman Farmer?
“Woman farmer” is a broad term that includes all women involved in growing, producing, processing, or selling food, including:
- Smallholder farmers
- Indigenous and rural women
- Producers and processors
- Traders and market workers
- Fishers, fish workers, and beekeepers
- Livestock herders and pastoralists
- Entrepreneurs in agricultural value chains
The Importance of Women Farmers
Women play a crucial role in global food systems. In many regions of the developing world, such as Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, they contribute a significant share of the labor needed to plant, harvest, and sell food, while also anchoring household nutrition and community wellbeing.
Yet, despite their central role, women farmers face a range of serious barriers. Many are denied secure access to land and property. Others struggle to obtain credit, financial services, or modern tools and training.
Access to markets and social protection remains limited, and discrimination can be part of their everyday experience. These challenges not only constrain productivity but also deepen poverty, especially in rural communities.
UN Development Goals
Supporting women farmers is essential to achieving the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Women’s empowerment directly supports:
- SDG 1: Ending poverty
- SDG 2: Ending hunger and improving food security
- SDG 5: Achieving gender equality
- SDG 10: Reducing inequality within and among countries
Strengthening women’s rights, access, opportunities, and resources can boost food production, raise incomes, and support sustainable development.
What the UN Wants Countries to Do
The International Year of the Woman Farmer calls on countries, organizations, and communities to act. The UN encourages policies and programs that guarantee women equal access to land, property, and inheritance rights; expand education, training, and financial literacy; and improve opportunities to secure credit and business services.
It also urges governments to strengthen women’s rights at work, bolster their participation in cooperatives, widen digital and financial inclusion, and share knowledge and success stories that accelerate progress. The overarching goal is to ensure that women farmers have the tools and resources needed to thrive.
IYWF 2026: What to Expect
Throughout 2026, you can expect:
- Awareness campaigns highlighting the roles of women farmers
- Workshops on sustainable farming, technology, and resilience
- Research and discussions on overcoming barriers
- Stories that give a platform to the voices of women farmers
- Initiatives that spotlight innovation, tradition, and community knowledge
The UN has asked the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to coordinate efforts, working alongside other UN agencies. FAO will report back on the results after the year concludes.