CASE STUDY 4

Integrated Resilience for Women Climate Migrants

Niger

Context

In Niger, over 4 million households are facing extreme food insecurity caused by prolonged periods of drought and decades of increasing desertification of the Sahel. The degradation of agricultural resources has a significant impact on food security and household income. Young men often migrate to the cities, leaving their partners and children with meager livelihoods in the village. Increasingly, women and girls are also migrating to cities in search of income or marriage. Women who migrate often suffer from the consequences of unwanted pregnancies, clandestine abortions, rape, sexual harassment, and divorce.

Organization

Pathfinder International is an international sexual and reproductive health and rights NGO established in the US in 1957. They work with local community partners to expand access to sexual and reproductive health services and to advance climate resilience and women’s empowerment.

Approach

  • The level of knowledge, attitudes, and practices in reproductive health and contraceptive services improved significantly. The use of sexual and reproductive health/contraceptive services in health centers increased from 28% to 97% among the 50 non-migrant women, and from 51% to 91% among the 50 migrant women.

  • The use of modern contraceptive methods increased considerably among beneficiaries. The rate of contraceptive use increased from 2% to 30% among the 50 non-migrant women and from 3% to 9% among the 50 migrant women.

  • Land ownership increased from 45% to 77% among non-migrant women and from 43% to 86% among migrant women.

Results to Date

In 2022, Pathfinder Niger launched an integrated community health and income-generation approach for young women and girls impacted by climate migration, called the Tangamo Project. They recruited and trained 50 non-migrant women on reproductive health and contraceptive services, maternal and child health, and gender-based violence in rural villages in Niger’s Tondikandia Commune. This was followed up with capacity building on income-generating activities, and the women were given farming and livestock kits. 

At urban migration sites, they recruited and trained 50 young migrant women on leadership, life skills, and how to respond to gender-based violence (GBV). They also received sexual and reproductive health and contraceptive services information. In addition, Pathfinder carried out advocacy meetings with various urban stakeholders for the protection and access of migrant women to health, law enforcement, and judicial systems. Women in both groups were provided with support for securing land ownership.

Sources:

PDF Innovative Approaches to Addressing Climate Change Impacts on Sexual & Reproductive Health: Case Studies from Around the World

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