Who plans for women? Representation of power in planning for climate change adaptation in Bangladesh

Abstract

Gender considerations have been part of climate change adaptation planning in the Global South for the last two decades. Despite this, studies have reported a gap in understanding how organisations incorporate people's diverse experiences of climate risks into planning and implementing adaptation strategies, particularly for women disproportionately impacted by climate risks. Taking the case of Bangladesh, this study contributes to this knowledge gap by exploring the representation of power in organisational decision-making arenas concerning adaptation planning. The investigation involved an analysis of five major national adaptation guidelines and 22 projects conducted in Bangladesh, in addition to in-depth interviews with 36 development practitioners. This article argues that adaptation planning is a top-down organisational process in Bangladesh. Decisions are undertaken in ‘inner circles’ involving experts, bureaucrats and top officials of major national NGOs and often fail to include the voices of diverse social groups affected by intersecting inequalities, including ethnicity, disability, religion, locality and, in particular, gender. The study elaborates on the need for a major change to planning and decision-making processes to achieve adaptation planning and strategies that effectively reflect women's diversified and localised realities and allow them to respond to climate risks adequately.