Gendered Impacts of Environmental Degradation in Informal Settlements: A Comparative Analysis and Policy Implications for India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan

Abstract

Degraded urban environments disproportionately affect marginalized populations, and especially impoverished women in South Asia’s informal settlements, where climate change vulnerabilities and gender inequalities are extreme. A comparative analysis was conducted of three neighboring countries, India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, where urban environments, climate risks, and gender relations exhibit significant variances. With original survey data from 12 informal settlements across New Delhi, Dhaka, Islamabad, and Lahore, it was found that women are less empowered than men in all three countries, but their determinants related to environmental degradation and climate change vary. Qualitative data from key informants reveals several explanatory mechanisms of observed differences.

Keywords:

• women’s empowerment
• environmental degradation
• informal settlements
• comparative analysis
• mixed methods

Acknowledgements

This work was carried out with financial support under the Growth and Economic Opportunities for Women (GrOW) initiative. GrOW is a multi-funder partnership with the UK Government’s Department for International Development, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Canada’s International Development Research Centre. Several people contributed to the development of this paper. We are particularly indebted to Dr. H. Elizabeth Peters (Urban Institute) and Mr. Ali Tauqeer Sheikh (LEAD Pakistan) for thoughtful remarks on earlier drafts and the conceptual framework, Ms. Khadija Anjum and Ms. Irum Hamid (LEAD Pakistan) for expert research assistance, Mr. Yasir Masood Afaq for fieldwork in Pakistan, Ms. Rahela Rabbani for fieldwork in Bangladesh, and Ms. Aditi Kapoor for fieldwork in India. We are grateful to two anonymous reviewers for their excellent suggestions on earlier drafts. We express our sincere gratitude to the Association of Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) and the Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis (JCPA) for the best paper in comparative policy analysis award presented at APPAM’s Fall 2019 conference.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the International Development Research Centre, Canada [118112-001].

Notes on contributors

Amit Patel

Amit Patel is Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Public Affairs at University of Massachusetts Boston. His research focuses on housing and health disparities concerning marginalized populations, mainly urban poor living in slums of the Global South.

Hina Lotia

Hina Lotia is a Senior Policy Analyst working at the Planning Commission, Pakistan. Her research focuses on the interface between climate change, water and sustainable development, from a policy and practice lens.

Ammar A. Malik

Ammar A. Malik is senior research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. His research focuses on how urban form impacts the function of cities, particularly the intersection between land-use and transportation policies, and their impact on gender.

Marcia D. Mundt

Dr. Marcia Mundt is a Program Officer on the Learning, Evaluation, and Research team at the United States Institute of Peace. Her research focuses on initiatives that bring together civil society, the private sector, and government in post-conflict contexts to promote reconciliation, economic development, and democratic transition.

Hyunjung Lee

Hyunjung Lee is a Health Resources & Services Administration - Office of Health Equity (HRSA-OHE) Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) postdoctoral fellow. Her research interests are social determinants of mental and physical health, and health disparities among racial/ethnic groups and socially disadvantaged and underserved populations.

Muhammad Arshed Rafiq

Muhammad Arshed Rafiq is Pakistan-based consultant to development projects on environment and climate change. His research interests intersect at urban resilience, circular economy and gender.