Women In Politics: Participation of Female Parliamentarians for Gender-Responsive Disaster Governance in Pakistan

Introduction:

Disasters refers to the extreme damage caused by combined synergy of hazard and vulnerability. The environmental phenomena becomes disaster after mishandling through improper understanding, mismanagement and technical negligence. The twenty first century has unbolted the parlous situation of Climate disasters with multiple worldwide vulnerabilities and impairments. The multiscale devastation caused by these changes in climatic patterns are experienced differently across the globe (Kelman et al., 2016). The Intergovernmental Pannel on Climate Change(IPCC) in its special report on disaster management(SERX) has clearly mentioned the climate change as route cause of extreme weather events and disaster intensification in recent era(IPCC. 2012).

The report states that alteration in usual climate patterns changes the intensity, frequency, timing, duration, and extant of extreme weather events. Accumulation of multiple extreme weather events can also intensify the hazardous conditions and cause induce multiscale damage(IPCC. 2012). The natural climatic variability has become major universal factor along with the anthropogenic activities in inducing extreme climate events. The exposure to these climate extremes and vulnerability of community and natural system is different depending upon social, geographical, economical, technical and gender variabilities (Atapattu et al., 2025).

The exposure and vulnerability varies across spatial and temporal scale over different environmental factors, institutional framework, technological interventions and governance structure of disaster prone communities. The natural physical processes of climate system dynamics are being effected by the global warming and other climate elements. In rapid climate extreme conditions, the importance of climate projections in institutional framing, governance and policy making, planned resource allocation, and technological advancement has become crucial (Cong et al., 2023).

Global Climate Change and disaster vulnerability:

The climate change has become global phenomena endangering the sustainable balance of diverse sectors around the world. Unpredicted variations in regional weather patterns accelerate pandemic and hazardous interventions, causing biodiversity loss, ecosystem modifications and large scale destruction. The dimensions of climate change involves regional variations in temperature, precipitation humidity, and air pressure along with small scale weather elements. These changes augment extreme events and generate different direct and indirect local or regional effects involving flooding, Ice cover melting, Sea level rise, heat waves, droughts and many more (Wen et al., 2023).

With the increase in global population, industrial interventions, and greenhouse gas emissions, the anthropogenic influences contributed more in climate change and intensification of extreme events at global scale. Overall economic losses have increased in past fifty years and these damages are unequally distributed (Singh et al., 2022). The IPCC report on disaster management have estimated the annual economic losses have reached above 200 billion since 2010. The damages in account of ecosystem services, infrastructure, human lives and cultural heritage are even higher. The scale of damage and causalities from climate extreme events is different in developed and developing economies. In developing countries with less per capita income, the economic impairments of all aspects brings long term impacts on overall life quality of victims (IPCC.2012).

Overall the exposures to disasters in less developed countries cause severe destruction from climate related events due to mismanagement, weak infrastructure and delayed response. The disaster induced destruction further cause extreme poverty, economic instability and humanitarian crisis that ultimately endanger regional stability. Therefore, extensive disaster preparedness, resilient infrastructure and planned mitigation are global challenges and requires comprehensive commitment to cater the appalling consequences and ensure global sustenance (Atapattu et al., 2025).

Gender dimensions of Climate vulnerability and Disaster risks:

Pakistan, in south Asian region has become vulnerable to multiple climate hazards, directly or indirectly induced by climate change and the Global Climate Risk Index has placed it on 5^th place. This heavily populated country is located on highly active and complex geological junction of Australian Indian and Eurasian plate so is prone to geological disasters mainly, earthquakes and landslides. Meanwhile the perennial rivers, flowing predominantly from northern mountains to Arabian Sea cause flooding due to glacial melting and unpredictable precipitation from climate change (Shah et al., 2020).

The vulnerability from hydro-meteorological climate extreme events including cloud burst, urban flooding, torrential rains, glacial lake outburst flow and droughts has been increasing. The low adaptive capacity, shortage of resources, financial dependency and continual climate extreme events have relentlessly threatened the population, biodiversity, and natural ecosystem. Climate change has shifted the weather patterns and trends, terribly effecting the agriculture, forests and livestock, water food and energy systems of Pakistan. In current situations solid governance structure, proactive regulatory measures, resource accountability and practical policy implementation is needed for effective disaster risk assessment and mitigatory infrastructure development in Pakistan (Rehman & Mengal, 2025).

According to reports of National Disaster Management Authority, floods of 2022 while inundating 33 districts, overall affected 33 million people, 16 million children and displaced 12 million individuals. whereas estimated economic losses of above 30 billion US dollars and 1730 causalities were also reported. More than 650000 pregnant women faced heightened risks of poor health and displacement. In Pakistan, 67% women works in agricultural sector and they rarely receive social protection in disastrous situations. In the male dominating family system, women generally find less opportunities to access resources and receive education. The awareness about climate change adaptation, disaster preparedness, mitigation, resilience and technical intervention are extremely less as compare to severity of situation (Ullah et al., 2024).

The global Gender Gap Index report 2025 has placed Pakistan at 148^th place for cultural and socio-economic gender inequality practices. Like other hazard prone areas, marginalized communities of Pakistan particularly women are extremely vulnerable to disaster exposure(NDMA, 2025). The gender based climate change impact and disaster exposure varies upon power dynamics, socio-cultural position, economic dependency, biological strength and labor division. Similarly the understanding of adaptive capacity and risk from exposure differs with social symbols of caste, class, age, education, ethnicity and religion (NDMA, 2024).

In disaster happenings, the women commonly remain deprived of assistance, information, shelter, and rehabilitation. Gender discrimination particularly in socio-economically deprived rural communities of Pakistan has logged vulnerabilities for women specifically during the disaster and post disaster recovery and rehabilitation phase. Particularly In rural areas where women already

bears multiple social and economic discrepancies, recurring climate extreme events imprint devastating long-term socio-psychological abnormalities (Bhutto et al., 2025).

Institutional Structure for Disaster governance:

In twentieth century, despite facing frequent flooding and other disasters, the country could not initiate uniform, long-term and applied disaster policies and depended largely on centralized, military driven post disaster rehabilitation practices. In early years of independence, disaster governance had never been considered as priority by government officials and legislative bodies and they adopted primarily reactive and disorganized approach for rehabilitation of affected population. In 1977 the Federal Flood Commission was first formal institutional body established to forecast floods and coordinate between relevant provincial and federal administration to conduct the flood risk reduction planning(Khan & Muhammad., 2026).

In comparison to the neighboring countries, the evolution of disaster governance and related institutional framework in Pakistan remained potentially sluggish and politically fragmented. In late twentieth century, the United Nations specifically emphasized on disaster risk reduction strategies and later recommended countries to prepare National Action Plans for disaster mitigation. Pakistan being member of international organizations, formally committed to address the disparities in disaster management system through multipurpose, proactive governance structure in disaster mitigation and management (Cheema et al., 2016).

The endorsement of major international frameworks for climate change adaptation including Sendai Framework(2015-2030) for disaster Risk Reduction, the 2030 agenda of United Nations for Sustainable development, Sustainable Development Goals and Paris Agreement on Climate Change. At national level, Pakistan Government devoted special attention on disaster management after the devastating earthquake of 2005, by introducing National Disaster Management Act in 2010, First Disaster Risk Reduction Policy in 2013, and Disaster Management Plan of 2012-2022. Along with these policies, National Disaster Management Authority(NDMA) was formed and provincial authorities were also inaugurated on similar pattern. The institutional reforms were extended further by creating District Disaster Management Authorities to improve coordination from national to local level (NDMA, 2025).

Gender dimensions of disaster governance:

The National Policy Guidelines of 2014 were introduced to address vulnerable groups in disaster management. The Gender & Child cell in NDMA facilitates gender inclusion for disaster risk reduction through national level service provision. The National disaster management Authority has recently established National Policy Guidelines to facilitate vulnerable groups in disasters. The policy thoroughly addressed the cross-cutting issues of marginalized population including women leadership and gender equality, promoting gender responsive planning and economic stability, addressing homelessness, social inclusion and poverty, resource accessibility are considered. The document includes gender based necessities across the whole disaster cycle starting from preparedness and mitigation, response and recovery till complete rehabilitation (NDMA, 2025). Gender specific barriers and disaster risks are identified in disaster cycles, for instance ineffective early warning system for disable persons, social discrimination for transgenders in shelters, lack of separate safe space for children and women, no arrangement of gender specific disaster kits etc. The policy recommended measures to control such barriers and improve gender equality and justice during the disaster cycle to control gender discrimination and vulnerabilities ((NDMA, 2025). Although all these efforts of institutions in disaster preparedness are encouraging but the functionalization of proposed measures of the institutional frameworks are still challenging. The proactive implementation requires uniform structure of capacity development, public awareness , technical advancement, localized implementation, stakeholder engagement and sustainable financing in gender responsive disaster risk reduction (Khan et al., 2025).

Role of Women Parliamentarians in disaster management:

The Parliament of Pakistan is the legislative body consists of two houses as a whole, the house of Units in Senate or upper house and the Housse of People is called National Assembly or lower house. The National assembly of Pakistan comprising three hundred and thirty six seats for member elected from all units as per constitutional setting. Among these composition sixty seats are reserved for women that accounts for 18% representation on quota system (National Assembly of Pakistan,2026). Historically women political participation in national assembly of Pakistan remained consistent and the assembly gave first female Prime Minister to Islamic world in form of Benazir Bhutto (Saleem et al., 2025).

Currently, the women representation is 22% in National Assembly of Pakistan as some women members grasped their place in assembly by competing on general seats. These women parliamentarians are actively participating in different parliamentary affairs and are members of different committees for national development. In National Assembly, the standing committee on climate change and Environmental coordination is led by the women parliamentarian Ms. Munazza Hassan followed by different female members in committee. Similarly the standing committee on Human rights, Standing committee on Water resources, standing committee on Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, and standing committee on Interprovincial coordination also contain solid representation of female parliamentarians both in upper and lower house of parliament (National Assembly of Pakistan,2026).

In Senate, the convener of Standing Committee on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination is Ms. Sherry Rehman and female parliamentarians are actively contributing in focusing on national policies and international coordination for combating climate change impacts and promote sustainable environment. The standing committees actively reviews ministry performance, policy implications and budget allocation for smooth functioning of institutions related to climate change monitoring and management. In last two years, the committee proposed legislation, national climate policies, directed disaster management coordination, worked on international environmental engagements and conducted performance monitoring of relevant national institutions (National Assembly of Pakistan,2026).

The Standing Committee on Climate Change and Environmental Coordination collaborates with international institutions and experts for planned evidence based effective legislation. The committee under the leadership of women parliamentarians maintains the connection between parliamentary recommendations and governmental actions towards multi-dimensional climate change impacts and their mitigation at national level. Along with relevant institutions it also coordinates with international organizations to incorporate global action plans at national level for regional environmental stability. The women inclusion in climate change and environmental committees for national and international coordination shows governmental perspective of gender equality at national level. The participation of women parliamentarians of Pakistan in international negotiations and their representation at global forums signifies the women empowerment and gradual elimination of gender discrimination in Pakistan in near future (Khatoon et al., 2025; Mustafa & Shafi, 2025).

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