Climate Crisis Deepens Socioeconomic Inequalities in Rural Areas

September 14, 2026 · Milliyet Ekonomi

Climate change and water scarcity are restricting access to agricultural production tools, exacerbating structural inequalities and the burden of care in rural areas.

Climate Crisis and Social Inequality

While climate change affects individuals living in rural and urban areas differently, it further deepens existing socioeconomic inequalities. Structural barriers in accessing resources, agricultural services, finance, and decision-making mechanisms lead to women experiencing the adverse consequences of the climate crisis much more severely. If necessary adaptation and support measures are not taken, this process will escalate rural poverty and significantly restrict access to education and income-generating activities.

Access to Agricultural Land and Production Tools

According to UN Women data, less than half of women in approximately 80% of countries worldwide have ownership or secure usage rights to agricultural land. This limited access to agricultural land, financing, modern agricultural technologies, agricultural knowledge, and basic production tools significantly weakens the capacity of women producers to protect their livelihoods and adapt to changing climate conditions.

Care Burden and Water Scarcity

Drought and water scarcity caused by climate directly increase the burden of food and water supply for families. Globally, women undertake approximately 2.5 times more unpaid care and domestic work than men, while this ratio exceeds fourfold in Turkey. The obligation to supply water and fuel in rural areas where piped water is unavailable or water sources have dried up causes women and young girls to be disengaged from the workforce and education.

Migration Dynamics and Infrastructure Needs

Approximately 80% of individuals forced to leave their homes due to climate change and severe natural disasters are women and girls. This clearly shows that climate resilience cannot be achieved solely by building irrigation infrastructure, roads, or buildings. It has become imperative to structure inclusive early warning systems, disaster preparedness plans, social protection, and agricultural support mechanisms to encompass all producers.

UN Women and Inclusive Policies

UN Women views the fight against climate and environment not merely as a technical field but as a process directly linked to sustainable agricultural development and economic empowerment. The organization provides technical guidance to governments in developing gender-sensitive environmental and agricultural policies, while also implementing support programs aimed at increasing the resilience of women's cooperatives and local producer unions to climate shocks.

Emphasis on Climate Justice Ahead of COP31

Ahead of the COP31 Climate Summit to be held in Antalya from November 9-20, Lawyer Özlem Altıparmak, Director of the Foundation for Law, Nature and Society, stated that climate action is not solely comprised of technical measures, making the following assessment:

'The impacts of the climate crisis are not the same for everyone, and climate policies that do not consider differences do not provide equal and fair outcomes for all. Therefore, we must evaluate climate action not only through emission reduction and technical adaptation measures but also through access to environmental information, meaningful participation in decision-making processes, access to justice, and the accountability of public authorities. Viewing women solely as victims affected by the climate crisis and as 'vulnerable groups' renders their knowledge, experience, and struggles invisible. Women are the primary subjects of climate justice with their knowledge, experience, and struggle practices. For Turkey, hosting COP31, the real measure of climate justice will be whether the commitments made create concrete, egalitarian, and rights-based transformation in the lives of women.'

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