'A conference that gave Monaghan Women the chance to claim their space and have their voices heard as rural border women in Ireland in 2022'.
These were the sentiments expressed by Ursula McKenna, Coordinator of Women's Collective Ireland Monaghan, in the aftermath of the National Women's Council event in Monaghan to celebrate women in rural Ireland, earlier this week.
Minister Heather Humphreys - who delivered the keynote address - said the event, with its focus on 'women in rural Ireland leading change', provided a platform on which women could meet in person and discuss the challenges in rural Ireland that face them.
NWC Director, Orla O'Connor, told those gathered that women living in rural Ireland are more likely to experience poverty, assume the responsibility of care, and experience additional obstacles as victims of violence.
She added that those experiences and contributions often go unacknowledged in rural development strategies or decision-making structures and highlighted the importance of women's needs being reflected going forward - particularly when it came to violence experienced by them in rural communities.
