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The SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway underscores the need for a more integrated approach to sustainable development as emphasized in the 2030 Agenda. It calls for strengthened international cooperation and partnerships, with adequate investment and coordinated implementation, to address and halt the persistent development challenges of SIDS. As a key follow-up to the SAMOA Pathway, the Global Action Programme on Food Security and Nutrition in Small Island Developing States (GAP) aims to accelerate action on food security and nutrition in SIDS. It is intended as a tangible contribution to the integrated implementation of the 2030 Agenda.The GAP recommends action at global, regional, national and local level. The overarching outcomes of the GAP are to create enabling environments for food security and nutrition; to transform food systems to improve their nutrition-sensitivity, resilience and sustainability; and to empower people and communities to lead healthy and productive lives.

Agriculture and food production offer stable livelihood options to rural communities throughout Asia and the Pacific region. Even as the effects of globalization spread in the region, farm production – most often at the smallholder level – continues to be a family enterprise. A fair share of farmers in the region engages in subsistence farming and poverty is a common occurrence among them. Farm enterprises are mostly managed by family members and family labour is a critical asset and often the only reliable investment. As rural women and men toil to preserve their heritage and broaden their economic choices, their endeavours are made more difficult by a lack of resources and market fluctuations. Asian and Pacific farmers, both men and women, are guardians of biodiversity, household food security and providers of food to urban communities. In these small farm enterprises distinct gender roles and gender differentiated access to technology and resources are evident. This disparity is compounded by the neglect of investment in rural social infrastructures such as education, health care and communications. In such resource poor rural environments, the struggle by rural women for access to resources and services is inevitable. In many Asian and Pacific countries, substantial gender equality gains have been made in urban areas in education, health and employment. Yet rural women lag behind. Moreover, rural women’s work is multifaceted and demanding both as family workers and agricultural labourers. Social and economic indicators often do not do justice to their contributions. Development innovations such as microcredit and self-help groups promote rural women’s economic development, but emerging evidence suggests that gender equality in rural communities is far from an everyday reality. Persisting social biases and traditional perceptions and assumptions regarding women’s responsibilities and their capacities continue to hamper women’s progress. This publication presents an overview of both the substantial contribution made by rural women to the economies in the region and the persisting barriers to their advancement. The framework of analysis, data and information reviewed together illustrate the complexity of rural women’s work in the region and offer a broad perspective on women’s economic and social contribution as well as on the barriers they encounter in accessing resources.

Despite substantial increases in food production in many countries over the past two decades, the world is still poorly fed. Over 500 million people suffer from malnutrition; and every year about 20 million people die of starvation and its related diseases. In this situation, it is important that every effort be made to improve nutrition and increase food security, particularly for the rural poor. This publication aims to afford proper recognition to the contribution forests and trees make to the food economies of rural societies. It also outlines the changes that need to be made within forestry institutions to enable them to make a significant contribution to the food security of local communities. Food security is increased not only by the presence of forests but also by the small stands of trees found in homegardens and on farms. We use the term `cultivated trees' to describe the latter, and reserve the term `forests' for large stands of trees situated outside the homestead or farm, whether such forests are managed or not. Both play major, often little recognized roles in improving food security in rural communities. Parts of forest plants and trees are also used in traditional medicines. These medicines stimulate appetite, help the body to utilize nutrients in food, and fight infection. Tree products provide an extra source of income for the rural poor without which many families would go hungry or become malnourished. Fuelwood and charcoal, rattan and other materials for furniture making, tendu leaves for cigarette manufacture, gum arabic for a variety of industrial uses, numerous oils and resins, dyes and medicines are all sold by the rural poor. They enable millions of the poorest people in the world to earn the cash they need to avoid starvation. Forests and agroforestry systems also play important roles in stabilizing agriculture's resource base, for example, by slowing down soil erosion by wind and water and reducing sedimentation in rivers. In some cases, trees improve and enrich agricultural soil and help stabilize water supplies, thus improving soil productivity and making sustainable cultivation of marginal lands possible. Trees also exert important influences on micro-climates, thereby improving agricultural production.