In Senegal, women play a key role in agriculture; they constitute 60% of the agricultural labour force and are responsible for the production of more than 70% of food. Nonetheless, they face many challenges, particularly in terms of access to finance and quality inputs. Their productive capacity is also constrained by difficulties in accessing land and by the poor quality of infrastructure and services. Furthermore, over half of the poor (57.1%) live in rural areas, and most of them are women who depend mainly on agricultural activities for their subsistence. In order to achieve its goals of inclusive development and gender equity, the government should therefore prioritise the design of alternative policies aimed at improving living standards and lifting the economic constraints faced by rural women.
