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The Nairobian

If empowered, women can play a pivotal role in fight against climate change

Opinion

By Olivia Adhiambo Ojwando | Mar 06, 2025

Women’s adaptation to climate change is hindered by many challenges, including inadequate formal education, poverty, limited access to resources, and exclusion from policymaking and decision-making institutions, along with various forms of marginalisation. [iStockphoto]

As we mark this year’s International Women’s Day, I can’t help but reflect on the profound effects of climate change and other external shocks that have become strikingly apparent, particularly in the lives of millions of women in Africa.

Communities in sub-Saharan Africa that rely on rain-fed agriculture, livestock, and natural resources face severe challenges due to unpredictable weather patterns, droughts, flooding, and desertification. Women are often more vulnerable to these shocks.

These impacts disproportionately disrupt women’s safety nets and compromise their ability to earn a stable income, secure adequate food, and maintain their cultural practices.

As we celebrate the day under the theme ‘Accelerate Action’, let us reflect on the resilience of these women in the face of adversity, highlighting their daily struggles and unwavering determination to adapt and survive.

Women contribute significantly to sustainability, biodiversity, and food security. Did you know African women contribute approximately 80 per cent of household food production?

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FAO in 2023 found that women are essential to small-scale agriculture, farm labour, and day-to-day family subsistence, contributing to half of the world’s food production.

In addition to agriculture, they are the backbone of rural communities and are at the forefront of conservation efforts. They play a crucial role in maintaining forest economies, protecting wildlife, supporting sustainable communities, preserving biodiversity, and managing ecosystem services. Their unique perspectives, responsibilities, and deep understanding of environmental issues are vital to their societies.

Moreover, marginalised indigenous communities who rely on the natural ecosystem for survival, especially those residing near wildlife habitats, face a heightened risk of resource conflicts, further compounded by climate impacts.

Women’s adaptation to climate change is hindered by many challenges, including inadequate formal education, poverty, limited access to resources, and exclusion from policymaking and decision-making institutions, along with various forms of marginalisation. They also face the risk of climate-induced health complications.

Despite numerous challenges, women have shown resilience and innovation in climate mitigation by adopting practical initiatives crucial for balancing environmental protection with economic and social development.

Women are making a significant impact through initiatives like agroforestry, clean cooking projects, innovative farm-based microenterprises, climate change advocacy, eco-friendly businesses, and water conservation efforts. They are also at the forefront of anti-poaching efforts, highlighting their commitment to protecting biodiversity.

By harnessing their skills and resources, they have demonstrated that when women are empowered, they can play a pivotal role in the fight against climate change.

We need to harness their incredible strength and resilience by empowering them to play vital roles in society’s adaptation to climate change, disaster management, and the growth of our green energy sector. When they are provided with access to financial resources, ownership of assets, and opportunities for meaningful decision-making, it leads to transformative and far-reaching positive impacts across many sectors.

Ms Olivia Adhiambo Ojwando is the Climate Policy Director of Africa Wildlife Works