On October 25^th, 2023, within the framework of the Partnership for Sustainable Agricultural Development in Vietnam (PSAV) program, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development coordinated with the Grow Asia Organization, IDH organization, GDA Vietnam program, Nestlé Vietnam Company, and Pepsico Foods Vietnam company organized the “Workshop on Women Empowerment Approaches in Rice, Potato, Pepper, Coffee Value Chains”.

Attending the Workshop were more than 50 delegates representing members of the Public-Private Partnership Group (PPP working Group) and related agencies of the Ministry; Domestic and foreign associations; businesses operating in the agricultural sector; representatives of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of some provinces and cities; Vietnam Women's Union.

The Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Mr. Nguyen Do Anh Tuan spoke at the workshop.

At the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that the total number of female workers in agriculture currently accounted for 47.4%; especially in cooperatives, they account for 80%. This figure shows that women have been making many positive contributions to economic and social development, especially in agriculture. Therefore, women's economic empowerment and gender equality are among the top priorities.

Women play an important role in ensuring a sustainable future, but often face many difficulties in participating in all aspects of the value chain and have limited access to resources, opportunities, and rights. The lack of women's empowerment also affects sustainable development in agriculture. If women are not guaranteed rights and opportunities to participate in agricultural production, agricultural models will lack the diversity and creativity that women can contribute.

According to Mr. Tuan, in the context of climate change, taking advantage of women's intelligence and acumen in managing resources and applying climate-smart initiatives in agriculture is very important.

Strengthening the role of women in agriculture requires a focus on building gender-equitable relationships, providing training and development opportunities for female farmers, and creating an environment that promotes equity.

"This requires great awareness, support, and effort from not only the Government but also the private sector, businesses, and social organizations to jointly participate and ensure that women have an important and equal role in agriculture, contributing to the sustainable development of the industry" Mr. Tuan emphasized.

The workshop had the participation and sharing of experiences in strengthening the role of women in rice production adapting to climate change; producing quality pepper and coffee to meet export market requirements; and Sustainable expansion of potato raw material areas. In particular, there was the sharing of success stories from two typical women about their achievements since participating in the Production Cooperation Project of PepsiCo and Nestlé.

From these success stories, Mrs. Nguyen Mai Chi, Director of External Relations & Communications of PepsiCo Foods Vietnam Company said: "With the resourcefulness and high workability of Vietnamese women, through the encouraging results of 02 projects invested by PepsiCo, which are GDA co-sponsored with USAID and She Feeds the World implemented by Care Vietnam in collaboration with PSAV and the National Agricultural Extension Center, we believe that Supporting women in the agricultural supply chain will contribute to implementing Vietnam's goals of green growth, green agriculture, responding to climate change and digital transformation in agriculture more quickly and effectively."

Delegates participated in discussions at the workshop

“Our research in Vietnam shows that Vietnamese women are ready to apply smart farming methods adapted to climate change. Grow Asia believes that empowering women is a necessary action to exploit the full opportunities and potential of the agricultural industry. We support the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Office of Partnership for Sustainable Agriculture Vietnam to implement agricultural transformation and orienting an overarching, comprehensive, adaptive vision." Director of Grow Asia - Ms. MeganSullivan said. 

During the workshop, several specific topics were also discussed in the Discussion section, including specific policies and actions to create favorable conditions for women to participate and develop in the agricultural sector and supply chains, and the role of the Vietnam Women's Union in strengthening the role of women in the agricultural sector; Factors affecting the level of women's participation in the agricultural value chain.

To further strengthen practical solutions to enhance the role and rights of women in the agricultural sector and some key product value chains of Vietnam (rice, potatoes, coffee, and pepper), all partners emphasized the need to focus on building gender-equitable relationships, providing training and development opportunities for women farmers, and increasing decision-making power and proactive access to financial resources.