Understanding Gender Dimensions of Disaster Impacts on Agriculture in the Global South
Publisher: Integrated Research on Disaster Risks
Author(s): Zubaria Andlib, Givemore Munashe Makonya, and Kumbirai Ivyne Mateva
Date: 2021
Topics: Climate Change, Disasters, Gender
Climate change is recognized as inevitable and one of the most complex challenges that humankind faces now and, in the future. Simulation models have predicted increased atmospheric temperatures, an increase in intense rain events as well as a reduced number of rain days, leading to increased drought risk and hampered crop production. Indeed, the effects of drought and heat stress associated with climate change are expected to be more severe in the tropics and sub-tropics where temperatures are already quite high. Poor and marginalized segments of society are especially vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. They tend to have limited resources, the capacity to adapt, and hence their livelihoods tend to be highly dependent on natural resources which are sensitive to climatic variability. Just as different countries and groups in society have varying degrees of susceptibility to the adverse impacts of climate change, men and women also have different coping and adaptive capacities that lend themselves to different vulnerabilities and responses. Therefore, gender equality is a fundamental part of increased resilience to disasters for improved livelihoods. This review chapter is centred on cases of marginalized third world countries in Southern Africa and the Asia Pacific with the specific objective of understanding the nexus between gender, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction with a specific focus on agriculture. With this review, we intend to provide insight into gender dimensions for recovery in developing countries that is often overlooked by national and international policymakers, as well as bridging the gap between the policymakers, researchers and farmers.