Indigenous women explore how to adapt to climate change in Asal regions
A group of women from Kenya, organized by the Samburu Women Trust and supported by the Defenders Coalition, gathered to discuss strategies for adapting to climate change. Arid and semi-arid regions have been especially hard hit by drought, and new challenges are emerging, including human rights violations and land tenure issues. These Indigenous women and human rights defenders are working to advance the rights of pastoralist communities, as well as Indigenous women and girls, with the goal of reducing harmful practices that deepen their marginalization. Many of the women have experienced forced evictions from ancestral lands and now face the threat of seizure of unregistered lands or disputes caused by overlapping title deeds. They also highlighted limited access to climate finance in the ASAL (Arid and Semi-Arid Lands) regions, along with the lack of resources, capacity, and information that grassroots communities need to leverage such financing. Additionally, women are often excluded from decisions about the use of natural resources. Jane Meriwas, executive director of the Samburu Women Trust, emphasized that women are frequently discouraged from speaking out due to cultural norms, making the collection of their voices and testimonies a milestone in itself. Kamau Ngugi, executive director of the Defenders Coalition, stressed the importance of this gathering to identify gaps and assess progress in the rights of Indigenous and pastoralist women, with the goal of developing unified, strategic responses. According to the participants, a coordinated and holistic approach is urgently needed—as they are already witnessing loss of life from climate-related disasters, compounded by a lack of government preparedness.
