Effects of Climate Shocks and Climate Adaptation through Livelihood Diversification on Gendered Welfare Gaps in Northern Ghana

Abstract

Globally, addressing poverty levels and inequality remained one of the topmost priorities and has been accorded the first position in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Although Ghana as a whole is faring well in poverty reduction over the past decades, poverty levels and inequalities remains high in the northern parts. This study analysed the gendered welfare gap and the effects of climate change and livelihood diversification on the welfare gap. Through multistage sampling, 432 households were selected and interviewed using a questionnaire. A selectivity bias corrected Oaxaca Blinder model was estimated using household per capita consumption expenditure as a measure of households’ welfare. The result shows that there is a significant welfare gap of $45.85 (GH₵211.85), an equivalent of 11.4% between male headed and female headed households. Controlling for selectivity bias revealed that the observed gender welfare gap was underestimated. Livelihood diversification had positive significant effect on the explained component of gender welfare gap. Climate change/variability had positive significant effect on welfare gap through the explained component and a negative significant effect through the unexplained component. Therefore, observed climate change and variability led to an increase in gender welfare gap by 64.62%, while the unobservable returns from climate factors contributed to a reduction in gender welfare gap by 193.26%. Since addressing unobservable climate factors is limited, there is the need to improve the climate characteristics of women. Although livelihood diversification is a necessary condition, policies such as training and education that would ensure that females also have higher returns from such strategies are sufficient to address gender welfare gaps. To improve the welfare of farmers in the midst of climate change, animal rearing should be promoted among maize crop farmers. Similarly, government’s policy of one district one factory should consider improving agro-processing opportunities in the region into commercial activities.

Gender perspectives of climate change adaptation in two selected districts of Ghana

“…Already, this is being documented among researchers. For instance, Adzawla and Kane (2019) estimated that observable impacts of climate change and variability have led to an increase in gender welfare gap among farm households in northern Ghana. This justifies calls for gender mainstreaming into climate discussions (Alston, 2014).…”

“…One strategy of responding to climate change is through climate adaptation mechanisms. Climate adaptation is often adopted as an anticipatory, reactive or proactive measure to reduce climate impacts (Adzawla and Kane, 2019). Climate adaptation requires adjustment by humans to the actual and expected results of climate change.…”

Determinants of COVID-19 Response Strategies in Selected African Countries

“…The study highlights the influence of respondents’ demographics in COVID-19 threat and coping strategies, which corroborates the arguments by Poussin et al (2014) and Asare-Nuamah (2020) that demographic variables motivate adaptation behavior . The gender variance in COVID-19 impact and response, for instance, needs particular mention, as political, economic and sociocultural conditions in Africa intersect to make female more vulnerable, due to limited access to essential assets and resources that enhance adaptive capacity and resilient to shocks (Adzawla and Kane 2019; Fisher and Carr 2015). Implicitly, gender variance creates distinct and differential impact and coping response among males and females (Carr and Thompson 2014), with females likely to be the most affected by the pandemic (United Nations 2020).…”

Contemporary Family Challenges in The Light of Vision 2030: Imperative for Home Economics at Fifty in Alexandria University

“…The implication is that climate change and its associated shocks and disasters could worsen existing gender inequalities, especially due to a decline in women"s economic and social rights. Climate adaptation, rather than climate mitigation, is important to provide short term and localized benefits from climate shocks to households, (McKune et al 2015, Eastin 2018, Adzawla and Kane 2019. This therefore makes climate adaptation an effective strategy for households.…”