A/HRC/22/72 2. Markets 41. The market represents a social space that connects rural and urban areas. They provide income and support products for rural households, food resources for urban residents and taxes for local administrations. Markets must be accessible for women both as vendors and as consumers. 42. The vast majority of market vendors are women. In countries in the Pacific region, 80–90 per cent of market vendors are women. Yet, market spaces rarely offer vendors access to sanitation services or cooking facilities despite paying market day fees. Most women who travel long distances and spend several days at the market site lack adequate housing. These conditions increase the risk of women falling victims to harassment, extortion, sexual violence or ill-health. This situation is exacerbated for pregnant and nursing market vendors.52 43. Where women have limited access to travel to urban markets they would commonly use the local markets to sell their produce. The privatization of such markets may, thus, restrict women’s access to markets. As consumers, rural women may face higher prices for urban products because of distance, fuel costs and poor infrastructure. Therefore, rural women are more frequently faced with higher prices for consumer goods, and lower prices for produce goods.53 3. Employment 44. In rural areas, there is a clearly gendered division of labour. Rural women are more likely to be involved in informal work, which is usually part-time, seasonal and low-paid. When compared to their female peers from urban areas, they do not enjoy rights as pregnant women (paid maternity leave). Additionally, rural women rarely have work contracts and they constantly fear dismissal. Overtime work, sexual harassment, verbal and physical abuse combined with unsafe working conditions due to exposure to hazardous pesticides and other substances often characterize rural women’s employment conditions. 54 45. Research shows that the employment of rural women in off-farm related jobs reduces their dependency on agriculture and provides them the assets to cope with economic or environmental shocks. 55 However, opportunities for women’s off-farm employment are often scarce. 46. Income security is internally linked with social security benefits, access to essential services, education, and labour market participation. In the absence of a stable income, rural women cannot access these social benefits schemes. Studies in Latin America indicate that irrespective of household headship, more women are living below the poverty line, which is mainly due to the exclusion of women from the lucrative work force. 56 C. Poor or discriminatory access to education, information, health care and justice 47. As has been affirmed previously (para. 7 above) other human rights serve as collaterals for the realization of the right to food of rural women. Conversely, poor or 52 53 54 55 56 12 UN-Women, Safer Spaces and Better Markets in the Pacific Islands, 27 April 2012. UN-Women, note 25 above, p. 22. Ibid., p. 16. Ibid., p. 13. R. Holmes, N. Jones, note 40 above, p. 6.