Promoting gender sensitivity: Disaster risk reduction in Pakistan

Abstract

Gender sensitization is a theory that a maximum number of policy analysts discover easy to implement, but very few perform well. The same can be said about disaster risk reduction. When these two concerns are put together to mainstream gender into disaster risk reduction (DRR), concerned organizations and experts find gaps in planning and implementation of policies. This is not because the job is integrally challenging; rather, there is not adequate practical guidance and pragmatic information. This paper aims to increase awareness about gender issues in disaster risk reduction, to improve government capability to address gender problems in DRR and to encourage Pakistan’s government to incorporate gender perception into DRR legislatures, strategies and plans for sustainable development. The importance of the Beijing Agenda for global action on gender sensitive DRR and the Manila Declaration for Global Action on gender in climate change and DRR have been highlighted, with the help of information from other developing countries, to develop a road map for Pakistan. Capacity development and gender-aware knowledge products are the two main areas with the help of which concerns regarding gender sensitivity can be addressed in disaster preparedness, recovery and rehabilitation.