Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 October 2022
228. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the supports and funding that are available specifically for women in farming; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50700/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraGender equality is a key objective of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and a priority for the Government. It is also a core principle of the European Union and the new CAP Regulations place particular focus on promoting the participation of women in the socio-economic development of rural areas, with special attention to farming. Improving gender balance, gender equality and increasing the participation of women in farming are, for the first time, part of the objectives for CAP Strategic Plans (CSP). Ireland’s CSP includes innovative proposals to promote gender equality:
- An increased rate of grant aid of 60% for women farmers aged 40-66 years under the Capital Investment Scheme;
- Women-only Knowledge Transfer (KT) Groups; and,
- A call under the European Innovation Partnerships (EIP) initiative for proposals to examine women’s participation in agriculture.
In addition, Food Vision 2030, the stakeholder-led strategy for the Irish agri-food sector, includes a number of actions to promote and improve gender balance at all levels. It also recommends the establishment of female farmers’ networks and other supports to better understand and meet the needs of Irish women farmers, fishers and rural female entrepreneurs. It also proposed holding a national event on women in agriculture and I recently announced that former Tánaiste and Minister for Agriculture, Mary Coughlan, will chair such an event next year.
Also, since 2015, my Department has provided support for rural female entrepreneurs under the ACORNS programme. This initiative involves the development and implementation of a tailored programme to support early-stage female entrepreneurs living in rural Ireland. I recently launched a new call for applications and it is expected that up to 50 participants will be selected for the six-month programme that will run from October 2022 to April 2023.
