Research on the implications of Gender and Child Centred DRR

Description

Plan Internationa and IDS conducted research focused on two communities in Indonesia to examine the benefits and feasibility of child-centred DRR with a focus on the potential impact of gender and religion.
Girls were found to play important roles in the home upon which risk reduction activities could be built. Girls and women were considered less capable as risk reducers, although were recognised as being as capable as boys in identifying, discussing and communicating risk. Barriers to women's engagement include poor literacy levels and a lack of confidence in airing their views. An enabling environment for girls' and boys' participation in DRR/CCA means that committed agencies need to address not only the root causes of childhood vulnerability but also overturn long held cultural norms concerning gender and the social consturction of children as powerless agents. This requires strong advocacy for the formal inclusion of girls and boys in DRR policy making.