Green Climate Fund: Gender-based Violence Integration Pilot Project
Background
There is a growing body of research on the intersections between two of the most pressing issues of our time: climate change and gender-based violence (GBV). This includes research conducted by this project that showed that women and girls take more frequent and longer journeys to obtain food or water in periods of prolonged drought, which makes them more vulnerable to sexual assault. Some families resort to marrying off their daughters early to cope with food scarcity. This research also found that climate change mitigation and livelihoods strengthening efforts may inadvertently exacerbate risk and causal factors of GBV.
In response to such research, this pilot project is integrating GBV prevention and risk mitigation strategies in two districts in Uganda as part of a broader Green Climate Fund (GCF) Building Resilient Communities, Wetland Ecosystems and Associated Catchments project. With a civil society partner, the project developed a GBV Risk Mitigation Strategy that has been adopted by three government partners: the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) and the Uganda National Meteorological Agency (UNMA). These ministries are not traditional partners for GBV work and through sensitization and capacity strengthening, the pilot has overcome their initial scepticism and garnered their support to prevent GBV in the process of executing their normal duties.
Knowledge Products and Videos:
- UNDP Blog: Why climate change fuels violence against women
- Video: Climate Change, poverty and gender