Gender-based differences in flood vulnerability among men and women in the char farming households of Bangladesh

Abstract

Gender and vulnerability are important issues to examine in the context of flooding caused by climate change. Men and women around the world adapt differently to climate change effects and natural disasters. Therefore, this study examines men and women’s level of vulnerabilities and their choices of livelihood practices in char farming households in Zanjira, Bangladesh. The study used primary and secondary data. Both qualitative and quantitative were collected. Quantitative data were collected from a household survey of 115 men and 114 women using a questionnaire. Qualitative data were collected through 15 key informant interviews, 30 focus group discussions, and 18 in-depth interviews. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to assess men and women’s vulnerabilities, including three indices of vulnerability measuring access to livelihood assets were used. A hierarchical regression model was used to perform a gender-based analysis. The percentile score for men was 0.430 units higher than for women, revealing that male respondents were less vulnerable than female respondents in the study area. The results of the regression model showed that the use of gender as an explanatory variable increased the explanatory power of the model and was highly significant. The overall findings of quantitative and qualitative data analysis revealed that floods’ impacts were different for men and women and that women were more vulnerable overall, in part because of gender-related sociocultural norms. These differentials in vulnerabilities affected men and women’s ability to respond and recover from floods and adapt to new opportunities when disaster strikes.