Climate change impacts women and girls left behind in affected areas [1]
Thursday, August 31, 2023 - 22:23
Gender equality remains far from being a reality. “This is not just a concern for people who advocate for women’s rights; it impacts everyone, shaping the world we all share,” the Commonwealth Secretary-General, the Rt. Hon. Patricia Scotland KC, told Commonwealth women leaders in the Bahamas this month.
The Commonwealth 13th Women’s Affairs Ministerial Meeting was held from 21-23 August, in Nassau under the theme ’Equality toward a common future’.
The importance of enhancing the role of women in climate finance, increased support for women with disabilities, more economic opportunities for women, better representation in decision-making and greater protections from gender-based violence, were topics discussed.
The meeting was hosted by the Government of the Bahamas, chaired by their Minister for Social Services and Urban Development, Hon Obediah Wilchcombe, and attended by ministers, partners and members of many Commonwealth countries.
R.t Hon. Scotland said, “In our world grappling with the ever-constant threat of climate change, it is women and girls who bear the heaviest burdens and recover most slowly. About 80 percent of those displaced by climate change are women. A closer look at the evidence shows that those women, who stay behind in affected areas, are more likely to experience increased poverty, loss of livelihoods and health issues. These are worrying trends, which should not be ignored in disaster response and recovery.”
Meanwhile, ministers and senior officials also called on the Commonwealth to advocate for an inclusive ‘Loss and Damage Fund’ that supports the needs of women and men equitably.
The outcomes from the meeting discussions will shape the gender equality agenda for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, scheduled to take place in Samoa next year.
Tonga was not represented at this meeting due to other in-country affairs, the Ministry of Internal Affairs told Matangi Tonga.