This report is the outcome of a study undertaken on men and women’s access to and control over land in seven districts of the Volta Region in Ghana. The study evolved out of a need for increased insight into gender differences in access to and control over land and the implications of insecure access to land for households within the Volta Region of Ghana. The objective of the study was to obtain an improved understanding of gender-specific constraints that exist in the Volta Region with regard to land tenure.

In this issue, we will be looking at work underway on the Voluntary Guidelines on responsible governance of tenure of land and other natural resources. We will also look at work done in Thailand and lessons learned by the German-financed Bioenergy and Food Security project.

L'égalité hommes-femmes constitue l’un des dix principes fondamentaux d’application des Directives volontaires pour une gouvernance responsable des régimes fonciers applicables aux terres, aux pêches et aux forêts dans le contexte de la sécurité alimentaire nationale. Ce guide vise à accompagner sa mise en oeuvre par la réalisation d’une gouvernance foncière responsable et équitable en matière de genre. Il est centré sur la façon de gouverner les régimes fonciers pour qu’ils apportent des réponses équitables aux besoins et priorités des femmes et des hommes.

The purpose of the forum was to foster a mutual understanding of the challenges faced by different groups in fisheries communities and to find common ground and options for empowering fishers and fisheries stakeholders. The 140 participants from 38 countries discussed the importance of tenure and rights for responsible resource management and equitable development in fisheries. Best practices and lessons learned were identified by forum participants based on their own experiences in a wide range of fisheries.

Este documento describe la perspectiva de las partes interesadas sobre el desarrollo de las Directrices voluntarias sobre la gobernanza de la tenencia. Estas directrices representan la mayor medida de un “terreno común\" sobre la gobernanza de la tenencia que se ha encontrado hasta el momento en el foro mundial. El consenso fue desarrollado por medio de negociaciones intergubernamentales con la participación de la sociedad civil, el sector privado e instituciones académicos y de investigación.

Varias décadas atrás, las administraciones públicas concentraban sus esfuerzos en fomentar la pesca y la acuicultura y asegurar el crecimiento de la producción y el consumo de sus productos. En el decenio de 1980, cuando muchos recursos alcanzaron la plena explotación o incluso una explotación excesiva, los responsables de las políticas comenzaron a prestar más atención a la ordenación pesquera además de ocuparse del fomento de la acuicultura.

Issues relating to land and land reform have been moving up the agenda of rural poverty and food security in recent years with the increasing acceptance that the prerequisites for broad-based and equitable development include the essential need for people to have access to land and other natural resources. Access needs to be on an equitable basis allowing the poor and the disadvantaged, including women, to secure the assets needed for them and their families to generate sustainable livelihoods.

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 13 September 2007. Since then, the importance of the role that indigenous peoples play in economic, social and environmental conservation through traditional sustainable agricultural practices has been gradually recognized.

Cette étude propose une analyse de la dimension de genre au sein de la législation relative à l’agriculture et examine le statut juridique des femmes dans trois secteurs clés. Le résultat est une analyse qui identifie les principaux facteurs juridiques et certains facteurs non juridiques ayant une incidence sur l’existence et l’exercice des droits des femmes liés à l’agriculture.

FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Papers 465: The paper explores both the legal and the economic aspects of the management of each of the several different categories of shared stocks. In so doing, the paper draws heavily upon the results of the October 2002 Norway-FAO Expert Consultation on the Management of Shared Fish Stocks, and in particular upon those results arising from the many case studies presented at the consultation.

Women make significant contributions to the rural economy in all developing country regions. Their roles OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE differ across regions, yet they consistently have less access than men to the resources and opportunities they need to be more productive. Increasing women’s access to land, livestock, education, financial services, extension, technology and rural employment would boost their productivity and generate gains in terms of agricultural production, food security, economic growth and social welfare.