Rio+20 Portal

• Moderator: Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, General Secretary, World YWCA
• Speakers: Nonhlanhla Sibanda, People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA), South Africa
• Caroline Daly, YWCA-YMCA of Sweden
• Dr Jennifer Clifford, Center for Rebuilding Sustainable Communities after Disasters (CRSCAD), University of Massachusetts Boston
• Sabina Anokye Mensah, Voices of African Mothers, US & Ghana
• Facilitator: Jeffery Huffines, UN Representative (NY), CIVICUS

Venue: Church Center of the United Nations, 44th Street and First Avenue, Boss Room, 8th Floor

The panel discussion will review the role played by rural women in sustainable development and poverty eradication, from the local to the international level, and critically examine the impact of the current development model on rural women’s participation in global decision-making, particularly as it relates to shaping and implementing the anticipated outcomes of Rio+20. Case studies of the work done by rural women will be shared as a means to examine the daily challenges women face with regard to property rights, food security, feminization of poverty, inheritance and violence.