Narratives of Women’s Resilience to Flood Risks in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Abstract

Urban people and places in the Global South suffer greatly from persistent and extreme climatic events. Within the disadvantaged groups adversely affected by climate risks, women are disproportionately exposed, have higher levels of vulnerability and typically suffer the impacts because of cultural norms and their reproductive and productive roles. Although women play an important role in their family and community, they are generally ignored in climate change planning. This paper examines floods and flood-related impacts on urban women in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to demonstrate how women are vulnerable, as well as their responses and resilience to shocks and stress caused by current flood risks within their communities. Data were collected through in-depth case studies applying qualitative methods (observation and semi-structured interviews). The results illustrate that women are less resilient as they have less access to resources and limited support for incremental livelihood improvement. The opportunities to participate in adaptation planning are limited for women. The findings demonstrate that gender inequality still remains, although women could play an active and critical role in adaptation programmes. In order to enhance women’s resilience to climatic hazards, the paper argues that urban policy planning should empower women too in the decision-making process and promote diversified resources to strengthen their resilience to climatic hazards.