Climate Change And Gender Justice: Legal Protections For Women In Pakistan

Abstract

The impacts of climate change pose challenges to governance as well as human rights, especially in developing countries like Pakistan. Women, especially those living in rural and disaster-affected regions, suffer the most from socio-economic inequalities and legal protection gaps, making them vulnerable to floods, droughts, and displacement. Pakistan ratified important global treaties such as the CEDAW and Paris Agreement. Still, the country's legal framework, which[1] includes the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act 1997, Climate Change Act 2017, and the National Disaster Management Act 2010, remains gender blind and lacks adequate provisions to enforce gender equality. This research employs a qualitative, doctrinal approach to evaluate the constitution, laws, policies, and judicial practices of the country about global benchmarks. The findings illustrate that although the National Climate Change Policy 2021 and ccGAP acknowledge and address the need to integrate gender into climate change policies, implementation remains elusive. This study proposes measures aiming to incorporate gender considerations into environmental laws and disaster risk management in the context of climate justice and international human rights treaties.