Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight program. I’m Joshua Leo.
Voice 2
And I’m Liz Waid. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Experts believe the first potato vegetable plants grew about seven thousand [7,000] years ago. These first potatoes grew in the Andes Mountains in South America.
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The ancient people there, the Incas, had particular beliefs about these plants. They thought of the earth as a mother to all growing things. The moon gave “Mother Earth” fertility. It moved her to offer potatoes at harvest time.
Voice 1
Men and women each had a special part in growing the potato. Men put the seeds in the land. The women cared for the seeds until they produced potatoes. Around the world, this is still true. Women have an important part in planting, caring for, and harvesting the potato.
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The United Nations has declared 2008 the “International Year of the Potato.” In an earlier program we explained that the UN believes potatoes will have a large influence on future food security. They contain many good substances people need to be healthy. And they are easier to grow than many other crops.
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Food security is an issue in many developing countries. People must have enough to eat. When people do not have enough to eat, whole communities suffer.
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Food security also depends on gender equality. Producing food is an important goal. But people cannot reach this goal when men and women receive unequal treatment.
Voice 1
On today’s Spotlight we will look at how women are creating food security for the future and improving the communities around them. We will look at the potato and gender around the world.
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In Cameroon, farmers have grown potatoes for over one hundred [100] years. Today, potatoes are the fifth largest crop there. In 1992, seventy [70] percent of the potato farmers in Cameroon were women. But estimates today say that ninety [90] percent are women. Here, women usually care for their own farms. Their farms are usually independent from men’s.
Voice 1
Selling the potatoes is another important area for women. Women in these areas have developed successful marketing methods. And selling the potatoes provides jobs for many people. Women are also responsible for increasing and saving different kinds of potato plants. They make sure that people can continue to grow better crops.
Voice 2
Women in the country of Peru also hold this responsibility. Potatoes probably first grew in Peru. So there are already many different kinds of potato there. Keeping these different kinds, or varieties, of the plants is very important. Information from the International Year of the Potato says that more plant varieties can help to create food security. Women in Peru choose plant varieties to save. They breed these plants together to form new, stronger, varieties. For example, some kinds of potatoes can resist particular kinds of weather better.
Voice 1
In Peru, women are responsible for much of the family farm work. This is because many men have moved to cities. Some people worry that women are carrying too much responsibility. They believe it is not healthy. And they believe the labour and responsibility must be separated between men and women more equally.
Voice 2
Many women in China also share responsibilities in farming potatoes. In the past, rich landlords owned the farming land. Village people worked for the landlords but earned little money for themselves. In the 1950s, however, China experienced some land reform policies. Families received land of their own to grow crops.
Voice 1
Around this time women’s responsibilities changed too. Traditionally, women took care of the house and the family. But now, they began to enter into agriculture, or farming and food production.
Voice 2
They began to earn money. And after a time, women understood the power this gave them. They could see the good things they could do with this new money. Li Kaifeng is seventy eight [78] years old. She has worked on farms her whole life. She has seen how women’s responsibilities have changed over many years.
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“When I was young my family was too poor to send us to school. We worked alongside our parents in the field to provide for the family. It was a life that was very difficult.
Today there are more opportunities for women and children. They are able to attend school. Still, there is great poverty here. But now we can live a more comfortable life than before.”
Voice 1
Hu Yunabi agrees. She is fifty five [55]. In her family Hu has many responsibilities. During the day she cares for her grandson, makes the family’s meals, and works in the fields. But she does not do all of the work alone! She and her husband share responsibilities. Because Hu and her husband work together, they no longer live in poverty. They live comfortably.
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“The women of China have more chances in their lives now than before. I was never able to go to school. And I cannot read or write in my own language. We were very poor. It was difficult to save money.
Although there are still many changes needed here in our village, I can see some changes that happened in the last few years. We need to learn more about projects where we can earn money to help our families even more.”
Voice 2
Although Chinese women have seen progress, there is still more work to do. Gender inequalities still exist. Zhang Ailian is a Chinese woman farmer. She attends technical training in potato production. She says that fewer than ten percent of the students in these classes are women. But there are groups that encourage gender equality. They provide training to men and women that encourages equal work for men and women.
Voice 1
2008 is a year to think about the potato. This plant offers people a good source of healthy substances. And some people believe it is the key to food security.
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But 2008 is also a time to think about the importance of women. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has set goals for gender responsibilities in agriculture. Men and women both have responsibilities in achieving food security. Here are the goals of the FAO’s Gender Plan of Action:
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To make sure each gender has equal access to food.
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To make sure each gender can present opinions about how to use natural resources and agricultural support services.
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To make sure each gender is active in policy and decision making processes.
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To make sure each gender has equal chances for jobs.
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When men and women work together to care for farms, families, and homes, everyone receives good things.
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