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Rural women are invaluable to sustainable development and human well-being, yet they often remain in the shadows as they face incredible challenges and inequities.

Empowering rural women represents a significant sustainable development opportunity due their contribution to various aspects of quality of life such as food security and raising children.

This commentary summarizes workshop discussions focused on rural women and their role in development held in Rabat, Morocco in 2013.  The thoughts and reflections shared at the workshop ranged broadly, from the role of rural women in economic growth and agricultural production to capacity building needs. The workshop findings were to be fed into the process of developing post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals.

Based on the workshop discussions, it is clear that gender equity must feature prominently in the Sustainable Development Goals for them to be successful. A specific focus on rural women will definitely assist with addressing gender equity, a cornerstone of sustainable development.