Harms to Community Food Security Resulting from Gender-Based Violence

Abstract

While the right to food and community self-reliance underpin current knowledge and interpretation of community food security (CFS), the literature on CFS seldom accounts for the ways in which gender-based violence (GBV) disrupts and undermines CFS. In this review, we make the case that GBV in CFS contexts manifests as a continuum, involving different forms of violence that blend into and reinforce each other, fueling social degradation and undermining the capacity of community food system workers to prioritise and pursue CFS. We show that harms to CFS resulting from GBV manifest through (i) GBV-induced social degradation, (ii) erosion of moral and ethical values anchoring CFS, (iii) disruption of crucial food systems sustainability pathways to CFS, (iv) the challenges, behaviours and activities of community food system workers, and (v) the crippling of community-level on-farm and off-farm food value chains, which oftentimes disrupt food access, consumption and utilisation. We further outline that the diversion of CFS funds into GBV prevention services may reduce CFS-related economic outputs and that CFS efforts that are GBV-blind can undermine the agency of community food system workers, pushing them into decisions that undermine CFS. We conclude that there is a dearth of information on how to mainstream GBV-sensitivity into CFS plans, and it is unclear whether GBV-responsive CFS initiatives can enhance the legitimacy of CFS efforts in GBV-exposed settings. We suggest that the spectrum of what is considered “community” in relation to CFS be expanded; and that scholars and practitioners pay attention to the dynamics of GBV, focusing on how GBV occurring at individual and household levels spills over into communities to undermine CFS. Finally, since GBV is not only a human rights violation issue but also a catalyst for social degradation and food insecurity, we encourage refocusing CFS efforts to prioritise early detection and prevention of GBV across specific community-level, on-farm and off-farm food value chains in order to better enhance community ties and foster food security.

COVID-19, Climate Change, and Conflict in Honduras: A food system disruption analysis

“…The hurricanes also impeded public health efforts by damaging hospital infrastructure including potable water and cold chain equipment for vaccines ( PAHO and WHO, 2022 ). Gender-based violence, which affects household food security ( Okpara and Anugwa, 2022 ), can be impacted by changing social and economic dynamics within households as a result of both climate change ( Caridade et al, 2022 ) and the COVID-19 pandemic (Chandan et al, 2020); Honduras saw a 14% increase in reports of gender-based violence between February and May 2022 ( Fromm et al, 2022 ). Scholars have described “the three Cs” as “uneven crises” with compounding, inequitable impacts on vulnerable populations including women, lower-income households, racially/ethnically marginalized groups, and communities in climate hotspots ( Belsey-Priebe et al, 2021 ; Sultana, 2021 ).…”

The Quest for Female Economic Empowerment in Sub-Saharan African Countries: Implications on Gender-Based Violence

“…Evidence from previous studies has shown that most have concentrated on the ability to minimise or decrease GBV, especially domestic violence, with fewer studies focused on the role of economic empowerment and emotional violence (Bhana et al 2021;Eger 2021;Nunbogu and Elliott 2022;Montserrat et al 2022;del Mar Rodas-Zuleta et al 2022;Freijomil-Vázquez et al 2022). Another strand of studies focused on the micro-level (Bashford-Squires et al 2022;Tsai 2022;Okpara and Anugwa 2022;Mcilongo and Strydom 2021), while other studies carried out systematic reviews (Keith et al 2022;Sabri et al 2022; van Daalen et al 2022;Villardón-Gallego et al 2023;Mbukanma and Strydom 2021). Further studies concentrated on health, music, and socioeconomic issues such as sexuality, water, sanitation, and hygiene (Nunbogu and Elliott 2022;Philbrick et al 2022;Zhou et al 2022;Mahamid et al 2022;Raftery et al 2022).…”

A scoping review on the nature and impact of gender based violence on women primary producers

“…Women producers frequently lack access to education and training opportunities, which can hinder their ability to adopt new technologies and practices to improve productivity and profitability [ 27 ]. Additionally, women may face discrimination and harassment in their work, as well as limited access to markets and other economic opportunities [ 28 ].…”

“…While there are some programs and strategies that have been implemented to address GBV in agricultural settings, such as microfinance programs, advocacy for equal land rights and the promotion of gender-sensitive training [ 25 , 29 ], GBV remains an under-recognised reality, compounding the existing challenges faced by women producers in LMICs. As noted by Okpara and Anugwa, “GBV is not only a human rights violation, but also a catalyst to social degradation and food insecurity” [ 28 ] (p.12). The significance of addressing GBV, particularly in the context of women producers in LMICs, cannot be overstated.…”