Putting women front and centre in the UN’s Loss and Damage Fund
The risks of climate change and its likely impacts are well-established – the science is clear. The 6th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) details the risks of climate change, identifying how climatic disasters such as floods, cyclones, and rising sea levels are affecting people’s lives and livelihood.
For vulnerable communities in the least -developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS), recovering from such disasters is unimaginable.
Women from these climate-vulnerable countries face devastating impacts and are disproportionately affected by disasters.
In 2023, the Loss and Damage Fund (LDF) was established to support particularly vulnerable communities’ responses to the negative impacts of climate change. However, women should be placed at the centre of the LDF allocation, among other particularly vulnerable communities, on a priority basis.
Gender equality, as one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), calls for investment in women-centric policies that would contribute to their betterment – for example, access to health, sanitation and education. It’s an essential feature of an inclusive society.
Today, gender-centric policies aren’t limited to domestic violence or political freedom. Rather, these cover issues of climate as well. Access to rehabilitation processes, clean energy, and compensation for climate risks should be at the forefront of future policies.
In recent years, concepts such as “feminist climate justice” have emerged, highlighting root causes of climate injustice and inequity, particularly for disproportionately vulnerable groups in society. The LDF is central, then, in ensuring the human rights of women living in LDCs and SIDS.
Gender has always been a relevant factor in the context of disaster reduction policy.
The research on the correlation between gender and disaster can be traced to the works of Elaine Enarson in the 1990s. Her work focuses on gender and strategies for lowering all types of disaster risk, which covers both man-made and natural disasters irrespective of any particular vulnerable nations.
There’s a clear need to have specific responses for gender-based, climate-vulnerable countries. In the context of this specialised LDF, a gender-centric fund allocation ought to feature in the climate change negotiations.
Categorising “gender” in ‘particularly vulnerable groups is essential for future climate responses. For example, countries that have large river deltas are facing multiple unprecedented climate vulnerabilities.
In southern Bangladesh, the constant threat of rising sea levels, floods and cyclones has led to an increased amount of salt spillage into freshwater bodies such as rivers, ponds or wetlands.
The entire population is experiencing the disruptions of excessive saltwater exposure, drinking contaminated water and consuming 1.5 times the recommended salt intake from their daily water consumption.
For example, Asma Akhter, a fisherwoman from Satkhira, Bangladesh, depends on fishing for her survival. Women like Asma are facing reproductive health issues due to their excessive saltwater intake. If heard, the voices of these women would encourage just and equitable distribution of the LDF.
The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the central authority for formulating, amending or reviewing climate-response policies.
COP29 is knocking on the door, and marks a monumental opportunity to promote a women-centric approach to climate policy.
The LDF is still in its early stages, and its allocation policy is yet to be finalised. It has specific objectives to adopt a culturally-sensitive and gender-responsive approach.
The LDF is tasked with collecting the best-available scientific data from the IPCC, including local knowledge from vulnerable communities. Thus, COP29 would be the ideal opportunity for negotiators and observers to highlight the particular vulnerability of women to the impacts of climate change.
COP29 is the appropriate forum to promote the women-centric Loss and Damage Fund “allocation”, which would be a step in the right direction towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
Monash is pioneering a path to a greener, smarter, more equitable and sustainable future, where emissions are lower, and the natural environment and humans thrive. We look forward to participating at COP29, where we aim to accelerate global action on sustainability, empowering diverse voices from across the Indo-Pacific and influencing superior policy outcomes across a broad range of issues. Find out more monash.edu/cop29
