If women in rural areas had the same access to land, technology, financial services, education and markets as men, agricultural production could be increased and the number of hungry people reduced by 100-150 million, FAO said today in its 2010-11 edition of The State of Food and Agriculture report. Yields on plots managed by women are lower than those managed by men, the report said. But this is not because women...

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) on Sunday released the Humanitarian Action for Children Report, 2011, requesting $1.4 billion in its appeal to donors to assist children and women caught in the throes of crises. The report highlights 32 countries and emphasizes the increasing importance of strengthening the resilience of communities. “Investing in children and building the resilience of countries and communities living on the edge not only shortens their road...

A deafening silence hovers over Jerua three days after firebrand activist Niyamat Ansari was dragged out of his home, beaten up and killed for exposing fraud perpetrated by unscrupulous contractors, possibly in cahoots with Maoists, while implementing projects meant to ensure financial empowerment for villagers. Around 150km from the state capital, Jerua is part of Manika block in the Maoist hub of Latehar district. The 10-km mud road through dense forests...

The unbridled manufacture and use of pesticides in Asia is raising the spectre of "pest storms" devastating the region's rice farms and threatening food security, scientists have warned. Increased production of cheap pesticides in China and India, lax regulation and inadequate farmer education are destroying ecosystems around paddies, allowing pests to thrive and multiply, they said. The problem has emerged over the last decade and -- if left unchecked -- pests could...

A couple of years ago, Mahabubnagar district in India’s southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh had one of its driest years since 1929. The region recorded 90 percent less rainfall than the norm. But the mass exodus expected when droughts cause crops to fail didn’t happen. Men didn’t leave to work in cities. They stayed put. This was partly down to a network of 8,000 highly motivated women. The Adarsha Mahila...