There is growing evidence that climate change is real and it significantly impacts nature and people across the globe. According to the World Disaster Report 2012, Asia accounted for 63.67% of the disaster deaths and 40.73% of the disasters affected globally between 2002 and 2011.
Bangladesh has been recognised globally as the most vulnerable to climate change. According to the survey conducted by MapleCroft that looks 42 indicators across 170 countries, Bangladesh is on the top of among 16 countries that are most vulnerable to climate change in the next thirty years.
In a society like Bangladesh, women are more susceptible among the vulnerable groups due to gender inequality. Women’s and men’s roles in the private (households/communities) and public (decision-making) spheres are set in motion by the differential access to social and physical goods and resources.
This means that women take on roles as child-bearers, caregivers whereas men are assumed to be the decision-makers and wage earners. In flood-prone and disaster-prone areas, during natural hazards and other disasters, critical family planning services are not available for women in need and pregnant women are at risk of death and injury. Due to socio-cultural norms, women are also not taught how to swim which reduces their chance of survival in disasters such as flood.