The impacts of climate change on girls’ social and economic empowerment

Climate change is driving recurrent drought in the Horn of Africa. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) (2023) reports that current conditions in southern and eastern parts of Ethiopia—which include the pastoralist regions of Afar and Somali—are dire. Rains have failed for five consecutive seasons; nearly 7 million animals have died since 2021, and 11 million people are estimated to be food insecure (ibid.). How these immediate impacts are rippling across the lives of adolescent girls is unknown. This brief draws on GAGE qualitative research undertaken in three districts in Afar and Somali regions in 2022 and 2023 to explore this question.

Suggested citation:

Presler-Marshall, E., Jones, N., Yadete, W., Workneh, F. and Tilahun, K. (2024) ‘The impacts of climate change on girls’ social and economic empowerment’. Policy brief. London: Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (https://www.gage.odi.org/publication/the-impacts-of-climate-change-on-girls-social-and-economic-empowerment/)