‘Gender disparity impedes human progress’

French envoy says women play a key role in combating climate change

ISLAMABAD:

French Ambassador Nicolas Galey said on Wednesday that the Pakistan Gender and Climate Awards would provide a platform for organisations and individuals to showcase their efforts in promoting gender equality and climate action to inspire others to join the movement.

Addressing an event organised on International Women's Day to celebrate the first edition of the Gender and Climate Award, he said, by giving the award to three winners, we hope to build on this momentum and continue drawing attention to concrete solutions that are being led in Pakistan.

Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman also attended the event.

The Embassy of France and Agence Française de Développement (AFD), together with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Pakistan), announced the winners of the first Pakistan Gender and Climate Awards to mark International Women's Day.

The objective of the award is to highlight women's commitment and leadership in the fight against climate change and the need to adopt a gender-responsive policy, in line with the Paris Agreement.

The envoy said we know how much gender inequality impedes human development, and that women are often more vulnerable than men to the impacts of climate change because they often depend on scarce natural resources to support their families and communities. “Moreover, all statistics show that women are more likely to live in poverty, which increases their vulnerability.”

He said, tragically, the floods in Pakistan last August confirmed the impact climate change has on the poorest segments of the population, and even more on women.

The Ambassador noted that women are too often victims of climate change and they also play a key role in combating its effects.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9^th, 2023.