Decree 2145 published by the Colombian Ministry of Agriculture develops the fundamental ideas contained in Law 731/2002, to promote the situation of rural women and improve their standard of living.

The regulation provides for action to be taken to benefit rural women in an integrated manner, including training, access to working capital and credit, access to land, technology, financing and technical support.

Article 34 of Law 731 specifies that the Government will have to approve a plan to review, assess and monitor the programs that are run for rural women; in compliance with this, Decree 2145 approves the Review, Assessment & Monitoring Plan, designed by the Women’s Equality Board.

The regulation also provides for the option of creating cross-institutional committees involving rural women, in charge of enforcing the plan’s goals. So, the Decree sets up the Inter-agency Tracking Committee, as a forum in which the different sectors involved can work together. This committee will be made up of several ministers and representatives from indigenous groups, such as the Raizal and Palenquero communities, Afro-Colombian women, subsistence farmers and LGBTI collectives.

Their functions, among others, will be: i) to amend or make adjustments to the Plan, ii) to publicize and monitor public policies to help rural women, and iii) to recommend strategies for rural women, as established by international bodies. This Inter-agency committee will be supported by an Operations Committee and a Technical Secretariat.