BUILDING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN RWANDA’S CONGO NILE DIVIDE THROUGH FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION

The report assesses gender-based inequalities in Rwanda's Congo Nile Divide to inform a GCF project on forest and landscape restoration. It identifies that while Rwanda has progressive national gender laws, rural areas remain dominated by patriarchal norms that limit women's access to land, credit, and decision-making. The document outlines a strategy to empower women and youth through social behavior change communications, financial autonomy, and technical skills in agroforestry and beekeeping to enhance climate resilience.

• Rwanda possesses a progressive legal framework for gender equality, including the 2003 Constitution and the 2010 National Gender Policy, but a gap persists for women in non-formal marriages, such as consensual partnerships or polygamous unions, who may lack recognized land inheritance rights.
• In rural areas, patriarchal norms continue to subordinate women, often restricting their decision-making power to day-to-day household issues while men control productive assets and income.
• Women face significant time poverty due to domestic responsibilities, spending between 1 to 8 hours daily at cookstoves, which limits their ability to engage in wage labor or training.
• Gender-based violence (GBV) remains a critical barrier to empowerment; 57% of Rwandan women reported experiencing GBV from their partner in 2010, and women who earn more money may face higher levels of violence.
• Women are underrepresented in agricultural leadership and technical services, with 82% of extension workers in Rwanda being male, which perpetuates the exclusion of women from innovative farming practices.
• Climate change acts as a risk multiplier for vulnerable groups in the Congo Nile Divide, as increasing temperatures and changing rainfall patterns degrade ecosystems and threaten the subsistence farming that women heavily rely on.
• Agroforestry is identified as a high-reward, low-effort pathway for women to increase income and reduce GBV by eliminating long distances traveled for fuelwood, though they are often excluded due to traditional views of trees as a male domain.
• Beekeeping presents a significant economic opportunity for women and youth, but is currently dominated by men (86% of 83,000 beekeepers) due to the stigma that it is a vocation for the poor and illiterate.
• The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted women's livelihoods in rural Rwanda, with 50% of rural women stopping their economic activities compared to 17.7% of rural men.
• Youth in Rwanda face a precarious future due to the scarcity of arable land and a growing population, leading to a strong desire for diversified livelihoods and self-employment.

APA

Green Climate Fund (2023). BUILDING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN RWANDA’S CONGO NILE DIVIDE THROUGH FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp217-gender-assessment-cover.pdf

Chicago

Green Climate Fund. BUILDING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN RWANDA’S CONGO NILE DIVIDE THROUGH FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION. 2023. https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp217-gender-assessment-cover.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Climate Fund |title=BUILDING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN RWANDA’S CONGO NILE DIVIDE THROUGH FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION |date=25 October 2023 |url=https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp217-gender-assessment-cover.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greenclimatefund2023building, author = {{Green Climate Fund}}, title = {{BUILDING RESILIENCE OF VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES TO CLIMATE VARIABILITY IN RWANDA’S CONGO NILE DIVIDE THROUGH FOREST AND LANDSCAPE RESTORATION}}, institution = {Green Climate Fund}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www.greenclimate.fund/sites/default/files/document/fp217-gender-assessment-cover.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }