The global climate crisis is escalating fast, forcing millions from their homes, including women and children. The Migration Data Portal projects that up to 1.2 billion people could be displaced by 2050 due to climate-related events like natural disasters, droughts, and rising sea levels. As climate change accelerates, its impact on migration becomes clearer. Climate-induced displacement, while essential for survival, brings significant health challenges, especially for women, who face disproportionate difficulties accessing healthcare, food, and shelter during and after migration.
Climate Crisis of Migrant Women
The World Economic Forum “Climate Refugees – The World’s Forgotten Victims” highlights the struggles of migrant women, including limited access to prenatal care, menstrual products, contraception, and safe birthing facilities. These challenges lead to higher rates of unintended pregnancies, maternal morbidity, mortality, and increased risks of gender-based violence (GBV), all of which are worsened by migration, further compromising their sexual, reproductive, and mental health.
Despite clear evidence of climate change’s harmful effects on women and children, its impact on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) remains underexplored. The lack of gender-disaggregated data hampers informed decision-making. UNICEF reveals that rising temperatures and global hotspots increase stillbirth risks and harm maternal health. Climate change also exacerbates food insecurity, disproportionately affecting women and girls, leading to higher malnutrition rates among pregnant and breastfeeding women, which in turn harms fetal and infant health. This gap underscores the need for more inclusive adaptation strategies.
Efforts to Build Evidence on the Climate Crisis’s Impact on Women in South Asia
The climate crisis is having profound and multifaceted impacts across South Asia. One of the most alarming trends is the increasing salinity of drinking water due to rising sea levels and coastal intrusion in Bangladesh. Research has shown that in coastal Bangladesh, salinity levels in groundwater can exceed 1500 µS/cm, far above the World Health Organization’s safe drinking water threshold of 750 µS/cm. This elevated salinity is strongly associated with higher rates of hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, particularly pre-eclampsia and eclampsia (PE/E), which are leading causes of maternal mortality in the country.
Despite the urgent need to address salinity levels in groundwater, responses often remain slow, limited, and misallocated due to significant gaps in scientific evidence. Programs lack coordination across sectors, policies fail to reflect on-the-ground realities, and interventions do not effectively reach those in greatest need. These issues are particularly pronounced in adaptation efforts, which require solutions that are nuanced, highly targeted, and demographically refined.
To address these challenges, the Population Council’s Population, Environmental Risks, and the Climate Crisis (PERCC) initiative undertakes research, evaluation, and learning initiatives to create publicly accessible datasets, tools, and models. PERCC collaborates with a diverse range of public and private partners at the intersections of climate, health, gender, and equity. This collaboration aims to inform and shape climate adaptation policies at various levels, from municipalities to national strategies and United Nations agencies.
PERCC’s study in Bangladesh revealed that districts in the low-elevation coastal zone (LECZ), where most of the population relies on tube wells for drinking water, report significantly higher rates of PE/E. Specifically, a 7% increase in the risk of PE/E was observed for every 1000 µS/cm increase in groundwater salinity. Additionally, seasonal variations in rainfall exacerbate this issue, with PE/E rates peaking during the dry season when salinity in water sources is at its highest.
Areas of Intervention
To intervene effectively, the first step is to raise awareness about the impact of climate change on communities. This can be achieved through forums or workshops that explore the connections between sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), gender-based violence, harmful practices, and climate impacts. Clear communication will not only foster engagement but also aid in developing comprehensive, equitable climate policies.
However, mirroring from PERCC, there is an urgent need to address the existing data and knowledge gaps, particularly regarding SRHR, GBV, and harmful practices within climate policies. Prioritising the collection and sharing of data on these issues will strengthen the evidence base and support the inclusion of this knowledge in national and regional climate agendas and policies. This requires collaboration with experts, researchers, and local organisations to share insights, identify deficiencies, and strategize on integrating these issues into climate policies.
Urgency to Act
A United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) global review found that fewer than one-third of countries include SRH in their national climate plans, revealing a major gap in addressing the needs of women and girls affected by climate change. Integrating SRH into climate adaptation strategies is essential to ensure access to vital health services during climate-related crises.
Addressing the health needs of climate-displaced migrants is imperative. This requires understanding the unique challenges faced by these ‘forgotten victims’ and managing the broader impacts of climate change. Effective solutions demand collaboration across sectors, government levels, and international organisations. Government policies should integrate climate adaptation, migration management, and health care, including frameworks for managing displacement and ensuring health services meet migrants’ needs. Efforts should also focus on designing and implementing strategies that align migration and health policies with global climate agreements.
References
- World Economic Forum. “Climate Refugees: The World’s Forgotten Victims.” World Economic Forum, June 18, 2021. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/06/climate-refugees-the-world-s-forgotten-victims/.
- UNICEF. “The climate crisis is a child rights crisis”, UNICEF, August 2021
- Ahmed M, Suphachalasai S. Assessing the Costs of Climate Change and Adaptation in South Asia. 2014. Available from: www.adb.org
- CCDR-Bangladesh-Main Report.
- Spatio-temporal patterns of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia in relation to drinking water salinity at the district level in Bangladesh from 2016 to 2018
