Research vital to making agri-food system resilient, says President Murmu

New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu on Monday emphasized the need for research to bolster agri-food system.

“We need a systematic understanding of how to transform the agri-food systems. For ecologically sustainable, ethically desirable, economically affordable, and socially justifiable production, we need research which can enable conditions to reach these goals,” the president said while addressing an international research conference.

“Even though the world has entered the modern age, the world is still grappling with the challenge of attaining just and resilient agri-food systems. Still across the world women are held back and are stopped by discriminatory social norms and barriers to knowledge, ownership, assets, resources, and social networks. Their contribution is not recognized, their role is marginalized, and their agency is denied in the whole chain of the agri-food systems. Their story needs to change,” she said.

Highlighting women's roles from sowing to marketing, she promoted the vision of women-centric development in agriculture.

Narendra Singh Tomar, minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, reiterated women's integral roles in Indian agriculture, noting their equal time spent in fields and additional unpaid care work. 

"I am of the firm opinion that equality in agri-food systems will not only lead to a reduction in poverty but will also give women better nutrition and health access,” the minister said in the context of the G20 New Delhi declaration which put special emphasis on food security, nutrition and health of women as it recognized the critical role of women in holistic societal growth.

Himanshu Pathak, director general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), said the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and the ICAR play pivotal roles in guiding research, policies and investments towards better and more resilient agri-food systems. “Mainstreaming women in agriculture can bring about a paradigm shift in economic growth through technical knowledge and greater access to resources.

Recent CGIAR findings suggest that gender equity in access to resources and decision-making enhances community-wide food and nutrition security.