On August 2nd, we participated in the Women Economic Forum Latin America, the largest global gathering of women entrepreneurs and leaders worldwide. We gave a talk in which we discussed how we are reimagining the role of women in agriculture for the world. Participating in such spaces allows us to publicize the reality of the Colombian countryside by making visible the role of its farmers. It also allows us to turn our attention towards rurality and to generate awareness of the misinterpretation of farmers and the great challenge that agriculture currently faces.
The importance of rethinking the future of agriculture not only in Colombia but in the world, is because of the threat to the sustainability of agriculture and food security. Young people are not finding the countryside attractive or prosperous; there is no motivation to work in this sector. According to the United Nations, by 2050, the world population will be 9700 billion, making it necessary to question how and who will supply the basic inputs for food. Agriculture has the capacity to increase the incomes of vulnerable populations more effectively than other sectors of the economy according to the World Bank and yet a large percentage of adults in poverty are farmers. We live in a country that is 94% rural, but young people are increasingly migrating to urban areas.
In the talk we gave, we wanted to bring an inclusive perspective, showing that we cannot understand farmer women until we understand the countryside. We brought together the visions of sustainability, agriculture, and women, to show what we are doing with The Chocolate Dream, our long-term vision to drive change in the cocoa regions where we work.