Five Filipino women were recently recognized for their achievement and work in promoting sustainable agriculture and development. Each received the honor of being named most outstanding rural woman of the year. The awards were presented by the Philippine Inter- Agency Committee on Rural Women composed of the Philippine Department of Agriculture and the Philippine Commission on Women as well as other relevant government agencies.
The recipients of the Outstanding Rural Women of the Year Awards were: Myrna Conmigo-Acayen (Goa, Camarines Sur): Remia Navarro-Apostol (Koronadal, South Cotabato); Rebeca Castro-Tubongbanua (Buenavista, Guimaras); Marina Tumala-Inapan (San Juan, Siquijor); and Virginia Dentero-Dureza (Brookespoint, Palawan). They received each corresponding citation and cash prize.
Leading the awardees as Most Outstanding Rural Woman is Myrna Conmigo-Acayen, an integrated organic farmer from Goa, Camarines Sur. She is a farmer-trainor of MASIPAG, a non-government organization dedicated to diversified and integrated farming system. She has been growing rice and vegetables following natural farming principles and practices. Despite the fact that she was not able to finish high school and got widowed twice, Acayen was still able to provide for her children’s needs through hard work and dedication. She received Philippine pesos 50,000 cash prize and citation from the Philippine Department of Agriculture Gender and Development Focal System and the Inter-Agency Committee on Rural Women. In her acceptance speech, Acayen urged her fellow women farmers to recognize the equal rights of women and men and to embrace sustainable agriculture.
During the awarding ceremonies, Philippine Department of Agriculture Secretary Processo J. Alcala recognized the contribution of rural women in addressing hunger and cited their enormous untapped potential to generate results. He said that rural women are not just “helpers” of their farmer-or fisher-husbands but also the decision-makers in looking for capital, selecting crops, handling recordkeeping of finances and paying of debts.
The national annual search for outstanding rural women is part of the worldwide celebration of “International Day of Rural Women”, which highlights rural women’s critical role in food production and food security. This year’s theme is “Celebrating the role of rural women in sustainable food production.”
The search recognizes rural women who have excelled in their fields of endeavor and made outstanding contribution in the field of agriculture and fishery, thereby making significant impact on the lives of rural folk in their respective communities.
According to the United Nations World Food Programme, women worldwide produce 60 to 80 percent of the food requirements in the developing countries. For this reason, the whole world recognizes the multiple roles that women play, most notably as farmers and small-scale entrepreneurs in the food sector. Representing over a quarter of the world’s population, rural women greatly contribute to both the well-being of their families and the development of their rural economies.
“If women had the same access to productive resources as men, they could raise total agricultural output in developing countries by 2.5 to 4.0 percent, thereby reducing the number of hungry people in the world by 12 to 17 percent,” Ann Tutwiler, United Nations Food Agriculture Organization deputy director-general said.
