Gender Center FBiH: Women are a key mechanism for change in rural areas

On the occasion of the marking of October 15, the International Day of Rural Women, the Gender Center of the Federation of BiH, again this year, reminds the public that rural women are a key mechanism for achieving transformative economic, environmental and social changes necessary for sustainable development, reports the Patria news agency.

The very idea of marking this day was initiated at a UN conference dedicated to women held in Beijing in 1995, when it was agreed that this date would be dedicated to all rural women in the world.

The state of BiH has committed to implementing international documents dealing with issues of rural women, key among which are the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and the Declaration on the Millennium Development Goals.

However, limited access to credit opportunities, health services, education and underdeveloped infrastructure still represent a challenge they face.

Empowering rural women is of key importance not only on a personal level, family level or the level of the rural community, but also at the level of overall economic productivity. Therefore, it is necessary to support their initiatives for leadership and participation in defining laws, policies and programs that affect the quality of their lives.

Rural women must be actively involved in the processes of decision-making, planning and implementation of action programs. It is necessary to provide a wide range of educational programs that would meet the needs and conditions of the given environment and the characteristics of the local population. Modernization and transformation of the agricultural sector in a way that enables adequate infrastructure and services are a prerequisite for improving the quality of life of people in rural areas, which is especially important for women.

Congratulating all women on this day, the Gender Center of the Federation of BiH calls on all relevant ministries, institutions, non-governmental organizations and all other actors in the development of our society to cooperate in the implementation of the provisions of the Law on Gender Equality of BiH in order to eliminate the limitations that put rural women in an unequal position and to more significantly direct their interventions towards ensuring systemic socio-economic support for rural women, in order to ensure conditions in line with their needs, which will enable the full enjoyment of their rights, the realization of their potential for the benefit of all and improve the quality of their lives, it was announced from the Gender Center of FBiH.