Women Bear the Brunt of Asia's Climate Failures
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30 December 2023 14:29 WIB
By: Gabriela Fernando Monash University, Indonesia | Samanthi Gunawardana, Monash University in Jakarta
What does the future hold for the millions of women left to work in Asia's agriculture sector battling a climate in collapse?
As the world digests the confused legacy of the COP28 summit in the United Arab Emirates, the realities of those on the frontlines of the climate crisis remain muted among the noise of the major polluters and the fossil fuel industry looking to sustain its dominance in global commerce.
Less publicized was the introduction of the Gender-Responsive Just Transitions & Climate Action Partnership as part of the conference's Gender Equality Day. At the lavish conference hosted at the Dubai Exhibition Centre, just 68 states endorsed the intrinsic link between gender equality and just transitions.
This is despite a UN Women report released during the conference that predicted: "By 2050, climate change may push up to 158 million more women and girls into poverty and see 236 million more face food insecurity".
Women disproportionately face the impacts of the climate crisis. A recent UNFPA report cited that the 14 countries most impacted by climate breakdown are also where women and girls are more likely to die in childbirth, marry early, experience gender-based violence, or become displaced and homeless by disaster.
The Gender-Responsive Just Transitions & Climate Action Partnership explicitly commits to working to drive gender-responsive just transitions to mitigate and adapt to this reality. Partners have committed to enhancing gender analysis of climate change finance, supporting the collection of sex-disaggregated data, and improving equal employment opportunities.
However, the realization of this vision remains obscured by persisting gender inequalities. According to the UNFAO's report on the status of women in agriculture, substantial efforts are yet to be undertaken to prioritize agricultural women's opportunities, needs, and engagement in agriculture, especially for those in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
According to the Global Climate Risk Index 2021, a majority of the world's most climate-impacted countries are low- and middle-income countries, whose economies are heavily dependent on agriculture and agrifood systems.
Climate change impacts due to extreme weather events and temperature fluctuations have profound impacts on global agricultural practices and crop yields, disrupting traditional growing seasons. Between 2008 and 2018, climate-induced disasters cost USD$49 billion in Asia alone from a decline in crop and livestock production.
Droughts, floods, and heatwaves have become more frequent and intense, directly impeding crop growth, causing soil degradation, and jeopardizing agrifood systems, including farming, trading, entrepreneurship, livestock production, water harvesting, and irrigation.
Rural populations of South Asia and Southeast Asia, where women dominate the agricultural workforce, have borne the disproportionate impacts of climate shocks.
