Panafrican News Agency

IPCC report says women more affected by climate change

Accra, Ghana (PANA) - Women are more affected by the harms of climate change, according to a report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) presented, Ghana Tuesday in Accra, Ghana at a two-day workshop on enhancing the participation of men and women in the use of climate information and services.

"Climate change is not gender neutral, women are disproportionately (and often more severely) affected by its consequences," said the report.

"Gender inequalities lead women to face more negative impacts of climate change than men.The same applies to disasters: women are particularly vulnerable to disaster risk and are at risk of higher rates of mortality, morbidity and loss of livelihoods after disasters."

The consultative workshop has been organized by the African Centre for Climate Policy (CAPC) and the African Centre for Gender (ACG) of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

According to thw workshop organisers, the limited involvement of women in the use of climate services and information and the resulting climate change dialogues pose serious challenges in adapting to and mitigating the effects of climate change sufficiently.

The report noted that the world's poor, the majority (70%) of whom are women, are severely affected by extreme weather and climate events such as droughts and floods.

In Africa, for example, women who are responsible for food collection and production, water collection and fuelwood supply for cooking and heating, are also more exposed to adverse weather events than men.

However, it was noted that women have significant knowledge and understanding of changing environmental conditions, which could play a crucial role in identifying viable and practical community adaptation.

Their limited commitment to the use of climate services and information and other climate change issues deprives the public of this solid knowledge and expertise, which remain largely untapped on the continent.

Participants of the workshop will catalogue best practices and innovative ways to enhance women's participation and discuss mechanisms and a strategy for building partnerships with women in the climate change sector across Africa.

-0- PANA IT/BEH/MTA/AR 11Dec2018