Advancing Gender-Responsive National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Processes

The report finds that while 96% of reviewed NAP documents mention gender, women are overwhelmingly positioned as vulnerable groups (86%) rather than agents of change (16%). It highlights a trend toward more frequent gender references in recent documents and an increase in the recognition of other vulnerable groups, such as youth and Indigenous Peoples. The report also showcases practical examples of gender-responsive adaptation in countries like Senegal, Rwanda, and Argentina, while emphasizing the need for intersectional approaches and stronger institutional arrangements.

• The vast majority of reviewed NAP documents mention gender, with a trend toward more frequent integration in more recent submissions. Specifically, 96% of the 56 documents mention gender, and 72% of those mention the term 10 times or more.
• There is a persistent tendency in NAP documents to frame women as passive victims of climate change rather than active participants in solutions. While 86% of documents position women as a vulnerable group, only 16% recognize them as 'agents of change'.
• NAP documents are increasingly identifying social groups beyond gender as particularly vulnerable to climate impacts. Youth (92%), Indigenous Peoples (82%), and the elderly (75%) are the most frequently cited groups.
• Institutional and strategic integration of gender varies, with over half of the documents including gender ministries in their arrangements and providing evidence of gender considerations in implementation strategies.
• Capacity building and monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) are becoming more gender-integrated, with 64% of documents including gender-related capacity strengthening and 62% referencing gender in MEL efforts.
• Intersectionality—the overlapping of gender with other social factors—is gaining momentum but remains limited in practice, with only four reviewed NAP documents explicitly referencing an intersectional approach.
• Climate change significantly impacts the care economy and unpaid labour, primarily affecting women; this gendered dimension is reflected in 41% of the reviewed NAP documents.

APA

Dazé, A., & Hunter, C. (2024). Advancing Gender-Responsive National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Processes. NAP Global Network. https://napglobalnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/advancing-gender-responsive-naps.pdf

Chicago

Dazé, Angie, and Cameron Hunter. Advancing Gender-Responsive National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Processes. NAP Global Network, 2024. https://napglobalnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/advancing-gender-responsive-naps.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Dazé |first1=Angie |last2=Hunter |first2=Cameron |title=Advancing Gender-Responsive National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Processes |publisher=NAP Global Network |date=December 2024 |url=https://napglobalnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/advancing-gender-responsive-naps.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{daz2024advancing, author = {Dazé, Angie and Hunter, Cameron}, title = {{Advancing Gender-Responsive National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Processes}}, institution = {NAP Global Network}, year = {2024}, month = dec, url = {https://napglobalnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/advancing-gender-responsive-naps.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }