An important milestone was reached on Thursday, April 27; for the first time in Chile, a group of women in the agricultural sector was formally established as a trade association. Amagro AG was the protagonist of this important achievement, which was made official in a ceremony held at the Banco Estado offices in the Las Condes commune.
“Amagro AG was born as a group in September 2021 under the auspices of Fedefruta with the name of Umagro, with a board of 4 founders, all women leaders of the agricultural sector from different regions of the country. We have worked so far to grow, managing to bring together more than 200 members, all women who work with great love to contribute to agricultural development and improve the quality of life in rural areas.", said Patricia Benavente, President of the association.
Amagro AG's main objective is the representation and visibility of women in the agricultural world and their high level of performance and commitment, generating networks of contact, communication and support to enhance their development and participation in the different areas in which they operate.
Its Board of Directors is made up of Patricia Benavente Crestá as President, Maritrini Lapuente Fuentes as Vice President, Carolina Torres Pirazzoli as General Secretary, Ana María Fernández Ureta as Treasurer, and the Directors Catalina Cohen Aguiló, Carolina Cruz Vargas and Leonora Sepúlveda Michéas.
“The association rescues the values and all the contributions that women can make in agriculture. We seek to provide tools, to educate ourselves, things that are so necessary today in this world of global participation and where women have to play a role. That is why the birth of Amagro is really a tremendous opportunity to reach all the women of Chile.” explained Carolina Cruz, Director of AMAGRO AG, also President of Uva Nova and Vice President of the SNA.
The constitution of Amagro as a trade association will allow it, among other things, to become a recognized entity and promote the creation of collaborative alliances that contribute to agricultural development and to improving the quality of life of women and the rural world.
“It is great to be part of an association with such powerful women, who have been working for and in the countryside for years, each in their own specialty, with their experience and knowledge to share and thus be able to support all women in the agricultural world, with such important issues as more sustainable agriculture, improving the quality of life in rural areas and how we incorporate innovation.” added Carolina Torres, Secretary General of AMAGRO AG.
Maritrini Lapuente, Vice President of the association, also referred to the important step of AMAGRO AG: “We are women who love the land and work with passion in the different areas in which we develop, so the synergy that we can achieve by adding that energy and leadership is very powerful and we are sure it will help us achieve our goals.", he commented.
The members who participated in the founding ceremony highlighted this important achievement and called on other women in the agricultural sector to join the association to work together on the challenges facing the sector.
“Today the first trade association in Chile has begun, which will give many women in the agricultural sector the satisfaction of belonging to the countryside, proud of who they are and with a view to continuing to be a contribution to our country,” added Catalina Cohen, Director of AMAGRO AG.
Isabel Quiroz, Founder and Director of iQonsulting and regional delegate for AMAGRO AG in Araucanía, was another of the partners who spoke about the relevance of this group: “I have been supporting the formation of this group from the beginning. I was contacted by Patricia Benavente and what she told me made a lot of sense to me, because I am part of the women who work in agriculture, but there is also a whole history of female farmers, of a lot of empathy with many people, also of recognizing that there are many things to do, of giving more opportunities to women by being recognized,” Quiroz said.
Sandra Zolezzi, Manager of the College of Agricultural Engineers of Chile, and regional delegate of AMAGRO AG for Valparaíso, highlighted the importance of this type of instance.
“For us, especially in the agri-food sector, it is extremely powerful to get together with other women; this is a guild that is not only conventional and conservative, but also quite sexist, and among women we have to support each other to continue empowering ourselves not only professionally, but also socially, emotionally and physically, generating opportunities for women to share and support each other,” concluded Sandra Zolezzi.
This historic event marks a turning point in the agricultural sector with the creation of the first women's agricultural trade association in our country.
AMAGRO AG thus begins its campaign to recruit new members, who can apply through its website www.amagroag.cl or its social networks.
