Equity Issues in Disasters

Natural disasters affect women, men, girls and boys differently. In fact, in many contexts, due to socio-economic conditions as well cultural beliefs and traditional practices, women and girls are more likely to be disproportionately affected by disasters, including through loss of life during and in the aftermath of disasters, loss of livelihoods and productive assets, and increased gender-based violence. For some years now, the international community has recognized the need for, and has committed to, focus on gender equality and women’s empowerment in DRR. For instance, the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 (HFA), the global blueprint for DRR which came out of the 2005 World Disaster reduction Conference held in Japan, acknowledged the importance of the constructive role played by women in DRR. More recently, recommendations on gender-sensitive DRR and the promotion of a stronger role of women in building resilience were presented at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Japan (14-18 March 2015) and incorporated into the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 adopted by UN Member States on 18 March 2015.