REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MARY McALEESE AT THE LAUNCH OF THE FARM WOMEN OF THE YEAR AWARDS
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MARY McALEESE AT THE LAUNCH OF THE FARM WOMEN OF THE YEAR AWARDS TUESDAY 29 SEPTEMBER 1998
Last December, I launched a book of Essays on Women in Irish History - one of which, by Mary E. Daly entitled ‘Turn on the Tap’: The State, Irish Women & Running Water” deals comprehensively with the plight of both urban and rural women in Ireland as we progressed from those early tentative days after independence and then to the revolution of rural electrification and running water in the years after the second World War. In that essay – which is both amusing and sobering - she quotes from Henry Morris’s account of how “No woman in Farney would go to bed without leaving the hearth swept, and clean water in the house, and numerous are the stories of a woman who remembered only when in bed that there was no clean water in the house so she got up again, went to the well, and brought in clean water and then retired to bed with a satisfied mind”.
The point that struck me about that piece was the acceptance that there had been for so long that rural woman’s primary only role was to keep house, cater for family, and fetch water – she was not part of the “farm” in any sense that might be considered productive. Of course, many of us here remember very well the days when there was no running water available to the farm household – or electricity either - and it wasn’t that long ago!
Happily, the pace of change in attitudes to women working in traditional areas of ‘men’s work’ has been considerable, particularly in the last decades of the century - and now we find that farm women contribute 27.5% of the total work input on Irish farms. However, I strongly suspect that that 27.5% does not reflect the hours that many farm wives spend keeping the ‘life support systems’ in operation – in providing clean clothing and food – keeping the family ferried to schools and sports activities – and looking after ‘the books’.
Nevertheless, 27.5% is a major advance - and is a reflection, I think, of the willingness and eagerness of women to bring their own style and approach to the complex task of running and working on a farm – and, in the process, to bring a whole new set of talents and ideas into the ever-changing world of farming and agri-business. It is interesting to note that in 1936 there were five single girls to every single male farmer – and that this had changed by the end of the 1950s, to a situation where there was one girl to every two farmers. The opening up of opportunities in cities and towns and the gap in material standards between urban and rural life in that period had a considerable impact on the number of women remaining on the land. With greater participation by women in farming that trend may well change to a more balanced position – though not, I hope to a total reversal!
The initiative taken by the IFA National Farm Family Committee in introducing these awards with the Bank of Ireland and the Farmers Journal will go a considerable way to encouraging more and more women to turn to farming as a career. I want to commend the Committee and the Irish Farmers Association on this initiative which is bringing a new and positive dimension to the whole area of participation and inclusion of women – and the promotion of equal opportunities. By acknowledging the outstanding women who play a vital role in farming – you are identifying models for others to emulate – and giving them the encouragement to participate in many of the expanded activities in agriculture and agri-business that farming now has to involve if it is to survive.
As the concepts of traditional farming change with world shifts in production, consumption and market trends, there is constant need for fresh ideas and new approaches. By the engagement of more and more women in farming, a new wealth of talent is being brought to bear which can only have a positive impact on the success of the industry and on rural life.
ENDS