HARARE, March 8 (Xinhua) -- Constitutional body the Zimbabwe Gender Commission (ZGC) on Tuesday called on the government and relevant stakeholders to break the gender bias that makes women more vulnerable to the vagaries of climate change.
In a statement to mark International Women's Day, ZGC chairperson Margaret Mukahanana-Sangarwe said climate change impacted men and women differently, given their different roles and responsibilities at household and community levels.
"Women and girls face particular vulnerabilities resulting from cultural norms and lower socio-economic status in society. Their domestic roles often make them disproportionate users of natural resources such as water, firewood and forest products," she said.
"With climate change, these tasks are becoming more arduous, adding to the existing unfair labor burden borne by women and girls," she said.
There have been reports of men taking advantage of women and demanding sexual favors in return for access to water.
Women and girls also travel long distances to fetch water and firewood for their households.
Mukahanana-Sangarwe said the preoccupation with household functions had resulted in further loss of control by women over their destiny.
She, therefore, called for the recognition of the gender-disaggregated impacts on climate change, integration of gender perspectives into mitigation, adaptation and response initiatives and inclusion of women's voices and choices into climate change policy discussions.
She added that equal space and resources should be provided for both women and men to participate in climate change decision-making and action at all levels and that early warning information on weather patterns should be given to them across their diversity, including to those with disabilities.
She also said the government and stakeholders should "promote climate-smart technologies that are user-friendly for women and other vulnerable groups, (and) ensure women's equal access to training opportunities on climate change mitigation and adaptation." ■