limate change, a looming threat for all, demonstrates a stark disparity in its impact across genders. Globally, women find themselves particularly vulnerable to the multifaceted challenges posed by climate change, encompassing health, education, economic opportunities and various climate-related adversities.

The repercussions of climate crises disproportionately affect women, mirroring the broader trend observed in developmental and humanitarian challenges. The gender-specific impact spans critical areas, such as agriculture, water scarcity, climate-related diseases, violence and educational opportunities. Each of these plays a pivotal role in shaping women’s economic empowerment.

Consider the plight of women in agricultural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, where changing climate patterns have led to erratic rainfall, affecting crop yields. The burden of adapting to these challenges falls disproportionately on women, who are often the primary caregivers and responsible for securing food for their families. Limited access to resources and decision-making exacerbates the vulnerability of these women in the face of climate-induced hardships.

The interlinkage between gender inequality and climate change exacerbates existing economic and social gender disparities, especially in developing countries, such as Pakistan. A report by the Asian Development Bank highlights the precarious situation of women, who are predominantly self-employed in the informal economy. With a low participation rate in the formal labour force, women are more likely to grapple with impoverished living conditions.

For instance, in rural areas of South Asia, where women are actively involved in informal agricultural activities, a lack of ownership rights and access to credit hampers their ability to invest in climate-resilient farming practices.

During COP28, UN Women unveiled the Feminist climate justice: A framework for action report, revealing alarming projections. By 2050, over 158 million women and girls are forecast to live in poverty due to the climate crisis, with an additional 236 million women experiencing hunger. These projections underscore the urgent need to address the intersectionality of gender and climate change.

The urgency of addressing this issue was underscored on Gender Equality Day at COP28, marked by the launch of the partnership-to-support-women-economic-empowerment. This gender-responsive just transition and climate action partnership focus on three core pillars, aligning with the previous gender action plan’s key priority areas: capacity building, knowledge sharing and communication; gender balance, participation and women’s leadership; coherence; gender-responsive implementation and means of implementation; and monitoring and reporting.

In the Pacific Islands, where rising sea levels threaten the very existence of communities, women are at the forefront of climate adaptation efforts. The partnership’s emphasis on knowledge sharing and communication is crucial in such contexts, where indigenous knowledge held by women plays a vital role in devising adaptive strategies.

Over the next three years, before COP31, the just transition partnership will scrutinise the implementation of these commitments. Emphasising three key pillars — better quality data, effective finance flows and education, skills and capacity building — the partnership aims to bolster decision-making in transition planning, channel finances to regions most affected by climate change and enhance individual engagement in transitions.

Consider the plight of women in agricultural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa, where changing climate patterns have led to erratic rainfall, affecting crop yields. The burden of adapting to these challenges falls disproportionately on women. 

In tandem, the UNFCCC, the UN Women, the Women’s Environment and Development Organisation, the Gender + Environment Data Alliance and the International Union for Conservation of Nature organised the Global Conference on Gender and Environmental Data, urging swift action in collecting gender and environmental data for global-level, gender-responsive climate action.

Consider the case of the Global South, where the lack of comprehensive gender and environmental data hinders the formulation of targeted policies. The conference’s call for urgent action underscores the need to bridge this information gap to address the unique challenges faced by women in various regions.

Amidst the flurry of activities during COPs, a persistent question looms: Can we truly fulfil these commitments? The Gender Action Plan, launched during COP25 and unanimously agreed upon by governments, aimed at achieving equal gender participation in climate negotiations. The GAP amendments and an intermediate review during COP27 laid the groundwork for supporting reporting and implementing the gender action plan.

Yet, recent COPs indicate a lack of urgency in the process. The family picture from COP28 speaks volumes — of the 133 world leaders participating, only 15 are women. COP27 showed a similar trend, with 7 out of 110 world leaders being women. In 28 years of climate negotiations, women have consistently lacked fair representation.

From national governments to intergovernmental climate negotiations, women bear the brunt of inequality. As they are excluded from decision-making processes during climate negotiations, achieving gender equality or climate sustainability remains elusive. The gender composition of party delegations to recent UNFCCC sessions, as per statistics published by the UNFCCC Secretariat in September 2023, reveals slow progress.

For meaningful progress, climate conferences must ensure gender-balanced participation in negotiations. Investing in women leaders, especially in decision-making roles, is crucial for translating commitments into tangible progress. Gender-segregated data on climate change at global, regional and national levels can underpin efforts to promote environmental sustainability during the transition. Educational and capacity-building initiatives should integrate green skill programmes tailored for women.

Effective gender-responsive finance policies should engage stakeholders to integrate a gender perspective in funding design and implementation across all climate action projects, with specific quotas for women in the workforce. Ensuring women’s access to finance and technology is paramount for robust change, achievable through regulatory and legislative measures fostering financial inclusion.

Encouraging women’s voices and supporting initiatives led by women in climate adaptation and mitigation is vital. This involves providing grants, technical assistance and platforms for knowledge exchange.

Awareness campaigns emphasising the inter-sectionality of gender and climate change issues can educate policymakers, stakeholders and the general public about the unique challenges faced by women. Without women’s active participation in climate action, the transition required to address climate change and ensure a sustainable future for all remains a distant hope.

The writer heads SDPI’s centre for learning and development. She can be reached at sadiasatti@sdpi.org