Gender and adaptation planning in the agricultural sectors: the case of Uganda

This case study chronicles Uganda’s experiences developing a gender‑responsive National Adaptation Plan for the Agricultural Sector (NAP-Ag) and related capacity development for gender-responsive planning, budgeting and policy formulation. Lessons learned from these endeavours can provide insights for other countries who are seeking, like Uganda, to align NAP or agricultural sector NAP efforts with national goals as well as the Paris Agreement (Article 7.5), which mandates gender-responsive adaptation actions and capacity-building activities.

Uganda’s experiences developing a gender‑responsive NAP-Ag and related adaptation actions suggest to:

• Engage a deliberate gender lens at every level to identify and analyse gender gaps and build on qualitative and quantitative evidence of gender‑based vulnerabilities and impacts.
• Recognize the important role of women, men and youth as change agents in agricultural adaptation, not only as vulnerable groups.
• Address structural gender challenges, unequal gender relations and power dynamics, including the lack of ownership of land and other production assets, the unequal division of labour and inequitable decision‑making, that inhibit adaptation technologies and practices by women.
• Align with national gender plans and other related policies, such as finance, planning and climate change, and global climate and development goals and agreements (e.g. Paris Agreement, Sustainable Development Goals).
• Stipulate clear gender-responsive actions with a costed gender-responsive budget and a gender‑responsive performance monitoring framework.
• Strengthen stakeholder capacity, supported by gender experts, to address gender in adaptation planning processes.