A/HRC/22/50 poultry, which require less labour to maintain and become a source of income.42 BRAC also seeks to strengthen the beneficiary‟s capacity to use the assets productively, and encourages the political empowerment of the poor. The programme provides for the establishment of seven-member Village Poverty Reduction Committees, comprising representatives of BRAC, beneficiaries of CFPR, as well as respected individuals drawn from the landed and wealthy elites of the local community. Instead of aiming to reduce the power of the local elites as part of the priorities of poverty-reduction interventions, the programme seeks the active involvement of local notables in order to enlist their support. IV. Women's access to productive resources 29. Due to prevalent societal norms and gender roles, their higher average levels of education, and the fact that they are less constrained, men are often better placed to seize opportunities arising from employment creation in the industry and services sectors. The result is that, with some exceptions (e.g. women migration for household work), men tend to migrate first from rural areas, for longer periods and to further destinations. Women stay behind in the village – especially relatively older women, beyond 35 years of age, who are poorly educated and less independent – to take care of the children and the elderly, and increasingly, also to tend the family plot of land. Data in this area are often imprecise and difficult to interpret, partly because of the lack of gender-disaggregated data, as much of women‟s contribution to "subsistence" agriculture goes unreported in official statistics, and because the share of women's employment in agriculture varies from crop to crop and from activity to activity – ploughing, for instance, remains predominantly a task performed by men. Nonetheless, overall, this feminization of agriculture is well documented.43 30. Concerns have been expressed about the impact that the feminization of agriculture may have on local food security, given the obstacles women face which negatively affect their productivity. Indeed, women often have little legal protection or rights to property ownership, and they face cultural and social norms that hinder their ability to improve productivity. How can these challenges be met? In the longer term, improving education for women and expanding opportunities for them in off-farm employment are key. But for the large number of women who depend on agriculture, including, increasingly, urban and periurban agriculture (see A/HRC/19/59, para. 44), it is equally important – and urgent – to improve women‟s opportunities to thrive as producers. Gender-sensitive agricultural policies are required,44 consistent with guideline 8.6 of the Right to Food Guidelines concerning women‟s full and equal participation in the economy and the right of women to inherit and possess land and other property, and access to productive resources, including credit, land, water and appropriate technologies. 31. Access to land is key in this regard. In an earlier report (A/65/281), the Special Rapporteur discussed the vital role of access to land for small-scale agricultural producers, and the importance of addressing the discrimination women face in that regard. The right of women to have equal access to land is explicitly addressed by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and in numerous Human 42 43 44 14 R. Holmes and N. Jones, “Rethinking social protection using a gender lens” (see footnote 32), p. 16; I. Matin et al., “Crafting a Graduation Pathway for the Ultra Poor: Lessons and Evidence from a BRAC Programme”, Working Paper No. 109 (Chronic Poverty Research Centre, 2008). For a recent cross-country comparison, see SOFA 2010 (see footnote 10), p. 9; For an update on the phenomenon in China, see A. de Brauw, et al., “The Feminization of Agriculture with Chinese Characteristics”, Discussion Paper 01189 (Washington, D.C., IFPRI, 2012). World Bank, “Agriculture for Development: The Gender Dimensions”, Agriculture for Development Policy Brief, (Washington, D.C., 2007).