Gender-responsive climate action urged

Speakers say gap between climate change policies, gender issues still exists

ISLAMABAD:

Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul has said that a gap between climate change policies and gender issues still exists that needs to be addressed appropriately.

She was speaking at the launch of a study titled “Climate-induced migration among women: stories from Muzaffargarh and Tharparkar districts, Pakistan” held under the auspices of Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on Thursday.

“We need to acknowledge that the troubles that women face during the climate action are different from those that are faced by men so the level of struggle to cope with climate issues between genders is different,” the minister said.

Commenting on the findings of the study, she said that women empowerment was impossible without equipping them with education and financial independence, therefore, there is an urgent need to include women in the workforce in addition to providing them access to school and agricultural training.

“Climate-induced migration with a gender lens must be included in Pakistan’s climate change policy,” she said, adding that the climate ministry was working to achieve this objective. She added that the implementation of laws to protect women from gender-based violence should be ensured while working with law enforcement agencies at the provincial and district level.

Climate Action Network in South Asia (CANSA) Director Sanjay Vashist emphasised that we must look at this climate-induced migration from a regional and international perspective. He stated that climate change will severely impact agriculture, water resources, ecosystems, food security, health and energy production in the South Asian region whereas women and children are particularly vulnerable before this phenomenon.

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SDPI Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri highlighted that the study of climate-induced migration through gender lens was paramount in the policy structures.

He said that women-led households should be reached out on a priority basis in climate hit areas. Besides, we need to expand the scope of studies on the issue from national to regional to international levels, he added.

Raus Marija, a representative from International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) maintained that we need to focus on migration and the long-term effects of climate change as well as devising possible strategies and tools on climate migration.

She said that Pakistan was one of the most vulnerable and disaster-prone regions to climate change, thus, making data collection on climate migration should be a priority in the future.

ICMPD Pakistan office Head Raana Rahim said that since the study has showcased how the negative impact of climate change disproportionately affects the poor and less-educated segments of society, particularly women, the response must also be gender-responsive by taking these needs into consideration.

Earlier, Danish Hasan Ansari, a visiting researcher at SDPI, presented his research findings. He highlighted that economic empowerment is necessary to boost women’s decision-making power.

He said that we need to launch awareness campaigns on climate change impact for communities at the grassroots level and focus on the health and hygiene needs of women and girls, especially during such crises.

SDPI Project Assistant Khansa Naeem and environmentalist Maryam Shabbir also shared various aspects of the issue, including a high risk of sexual violence for women who were internally displaced due to climate change.

The study further comprised stories from local women on their experiences with climate migration, the challenges they faced, its impact on their health and well-being, financial constraints and lack of access to clean drinking water and food and impact on children’s education due to migration, especially for girls.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2021.