Gender and climate change in Southern Africa: case studies, regional report

19 April 2010, Heinrich Böll Stiftung
URL: http://www.boell.org.za

Johannesburg:  Although various studies have focused on climate change impacts and adaptation opportunities in Africa, few have focused on the household level and in particular on gender differentiated impacts of climate change. These studies (South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique and Namibia), commissioned by Heinrich Böll Stiftung, provide an analysis and summary of the findings of eight case studies carried out in four southern African countries. Furthermore, the study aims to identify various policies, programmes and activities that could address these issues.
 
Gender and Climate Change: Regional Summary:  Parts of southern Africa are highly vulnerable to climate variability and change. Successful adaptation actions are likely to be those that are finely tuned to the immediate needs of individual communities. Local realities and social structures need to be taken into account. In many cases, women and men have separate roles and different knowledge and a range of different coping strategies. 
 
South Africa: The study shows that women in South Africa are very knowledgeable and innovative with regards to coping with the impacts of the changing climate. Lessons can be drawn from their knowledge on how women can be better assisted to adapt to climate change. Results confirm that women play an important role in supporting households and communities to cope and adapt to climate variability.
 
Botswana:   The general objective of this report was to analyse differentiated impacts of climate change and climate variability in Botswana. Furthermore, it was to examine the gendered dimension of climate change, its impacts and women and men’s responses. The central research question that the study sought to answer was ‘Are women and men in Botswana affected by climate change differently?
 
Mozambique:  Mozambique is considered one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa that has been hard hit by climate change due to its geographical location and the weak socioeconomic situation. The major anticipated impacts of climate change are increase in the frequency and severity of floods, droughts and cyclones. Thus, adaptation measures to cope with the impacts of climate change are urgently needed at different levels in the country. These must be gender-sensitive, considering the differentiated role women and men play in rural societies.
 
Namibia: This report focuses on the Namibian case study. Due to the fact that climate change and gender has strong links to poverty, and that the majority of rural poor are women engaged primarily in subsistence agriculture,  the research primarily examined rural communities of Namibia. Fieldwork was carried out in Epyeshona village located in northern-central Namibia and Daures Constituency in the Northwestern region.