In the DFID White Paper, the government's commitment to addressing gender inequality highlights the frequent 'double disadvantage' of poor women. Poor women from minority groups, however, may experience additional discrimination. There is abundant evidence to show that many ethnic minorities and indigenous people are subject to economic, social and political disadvantage. The complex relationships between gender and ethnicity need to be addressed in order to understand the social processes leading to poverty of particular groups.

The renovation process in Vietnam in the past decade has enabled significant economic growth as well as and greater rights and more important economic roles of farming households. However, much of this reform has focussed on men as head of households, meaning men have benefited more from economic reform, both economically and in terms of their power within the household. Inequalities continue in access to and control of key resources such as land, water, credit and rest time, as well as in access to public services.

Less than 2% of the land available worldwide is owned by women. Why is the issue of land so gendered? What approaches and lessons learned can development professionals utilise to address the issue of gender and land? Data demonstrates a glaring gender gap in land holdings in all regions of the world. This is regardless of the fact that women produce 60% to 80% of food in developing countries. This working paper highlights critical issues concerning gender and land and provides an overview of the international and regional legal and policy context.

While the majority of women in Sub-Saharan Africa and particularly Eastern Africa provide a living for their families on land, they largely do not own it. This comprises one part of a study on women and land in five countries in Eastern Africa - and was commissioned by the Eastern African Sub-Regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI).

How can women be integrated in processes of democratisation? The participation of women in political and economic processes is essential for democratic governance. The PROWID grants system supported activities such as lobbying and advocacy, skills development and developing institutions to further women's social and economic rights. This report looks at women's participation in political culture, civil society and government institutions. Importantly, it puts participation in the context of shifting gender (and other) roles and identities.

Case study of the gender aspects of small-scale farming in the Vihiga District of Kenya, focusing on gender differences in access, control and ownership of land, and gender relations and attitudes to land tenure.

A bibliography of key texts, with, where possible, links to online versions of documents, plus a general bibliography of relevant resources.

Does poverty in Egypt have a woman's face? Is female poverty linked to their conditions in the labour market or levels of education? Are women particularly at risk in poor households? This report addresses the gender dimensions of poverty using the recent Household Expenditure, Income and Consumption Survey of 1999/2000 for Egypt. Poverty measures of males and females were found to be significantly different, in both urban and rural areas, where higher levels are observed among females than males.

Women's access to land is a fundamental factor in food security. Yet women all over the world suffer under discriminatory property and inheritance laws and customary practices which restrict their rights over the land on which they live and work. Articles 15 and 16 of CEDAW state the rights of women to property and inheritance. This report is a tool to help non-governmental organisations and multilateral agencies in advocacy and policy dialogue using CEDAW and the Optional Protocol (which allows individuals and groups to make complaints directly to the CEDAW committee).

Climate change is increasingly being recognised as a global crisis, but responses to it have so far been overly focused on scientific and economic solutions. How then do we move towards morepeople-centred, gender-aware climate change policies and processes? How do we respond to the different needs and concerns of women and men, and also challenge the gender inequalities that mean women are more likely to lose out than men in the face of climate change? This In Brief sets out why it is vital to address the gender dimensions of climate change.

As governments, the private sector, multilateral institutions, and international development organisations weigh the options for improving food security around the world, they must consider one of the most promising elements for addressing the needs of the world’s hungry and malnourished: secure land rights. Addressing land rights issues—in particular, women’s land rights—in programmes and policies designed to address food security and nutrition through agriculture can deepen the impact of those interventions and lead to improved development outcomes.

Because of their lower social and economic status, as well as physiological needs, women are often more vulnerable to nutritional problems. When it comes to sharing food resources in the home, women and girls can lose out. Indeed, the full realisation of the right to food for women depends on parallel achievements in the right to health, education, access to information and access to resources such as land.