In responding to emergencies, gender considerations are often overlooked. However, situations such as natural disasters and health pandemics do not necessarily affect diverse groups of women and men in the same way. For example, a low-income man in a wheelchair, a First Nations teen girl on a reserve, a rural elderly woman, and a new immigrant family will all experience an emergency situation in a different way. Their respective access to communication lines, information, health services and basic needs – as well as their vulnerability to illness, isolation, food shortage or violence – may all be very different.
Conducting GBA+ helps us to understand the different roles and experiences of women and men within their families and their communities. Their vital needs as well as their strengths in a crisis can vary and should be considered in our planning and response to emergency situations.
Failing to plan for and respond to the diverse needs of women and men, which often become more pronounced during a crisis, can leave vulnerable groups of women and men more at risk.