IFAD and UN Women join hands for rural women’s empowerment in China
Date:
Madam Maa Zenai stands proudly at the entrance to her brand-new shed. Inside is the small herd of cattle that has changed her life, thanks to a project that employed a ground-breaking partnership between IFAD and UN Women to empower rural women in China.
Madam Maa, who belongs to China’s Hui ethnic minority, lives in the eastern part of Qinghai province, on the vast Tibetan Plateau. There are few opportunities to earn a living in this remote, sparsely populated region. Most men emigrate to cities in search of work, leaving behind women and the elderly to care for homes and farms. Much of the productive land lies abandoned. The winters are intensely cold, rain is scant, and climate change is making farming even harder.
Ever since her son-in-law died many years ago, Madam Maa has cared for and financially supported her granddaughter, Zhang Yuhan, now 14 years old. Until recently, they lived close to China’s national poverty line, each making do with around USD 2 a day.
The article was originally published by IFAD. Read more