This webinar examines how gender inequalities shape access to food, nutrition, and opportunities across global food systems, and how accountability initiatives are helping to close these gaps. Drawing on evidence from the Global Food 50/50 report and related research, this discussion explores how power, resources, and decision-making are distributed within food system organisations and institutions. Speakers will consider what gender-responsive leadership and organisational practices look like in practice, including approaches to advancing equity, inclusion, and accountability in governance and programming. The session will also reflect on emerging priorities for policymakers, funders, and practitioners seeking to transform food systems so that women and marginalised groups can participate on equal terms and benefit fully from sustainable and nutritious food economies Dr. Hazel Malapit is a senior research coordinator at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington, DC. She leads research, training, and technical assistance on the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) family of metrics, including the Women’s Empowerment Metric for National Statistical Systems (WEMNS). Her work focuses on gender, women’s empowerment, agriculture, health, nutrition, and mixed-methods measurement. She has played a key role in developing successive WEAI iterations and supports national statistical offices, CGIAR centers, and development partners in applying empowerment metrics in impact assessments and policy processes. Before joining IFPRI, Hazel held the Herman Postdoctoral Fellowship in Gender and Economics at the University of Michigan and conducted research on gender, labor markets, and data quality at the World Bank. She holds a PhD in Economics from American University. Dr. Jemimah Njuki, a national of the Republic of Kenya, is the African Development Bank Group’s Director for Gender, Women, and Civil Society. She is responsible for providing intellectual and strategic leadership for the Bank Group’s agenda on gender equality, women’s empowerment, and civil society engagement - working across technical, geographic, and institutional boundaries to support the delivery of inclusive development solutions. Dr. Njuki’s portfolio includes overseeing the implementation of economic and sector work on gender, women and civil society, including Bank initiatives such as AFAWA, which is working with partners including financial institutions to unlock billions of dollars to reduce the access to financing gap facing Africa’s women entrepreneurs. Sonja Tanaka is the director of programs and innovation and a founding member at Global 50/50. She works to advance gender justice, equity, and accountability in global health and beyond, with expertise in research, policy, and strategy development. She was previously with the United Nations agency leading the global AIDS response.
