Every year on October 15, the world observes the International Day for Rural Women, honoring the indispensable contributions of women in rural areas to agriculture, food security, and sustainable development.  

From global plains to Asian villages, rural women are the backbone of food production, biodiversity protection, and climate resilience. Yet, they also remain disproportionately vulnerable to crises, especially in climate-prone countries. In Asia, where monsoon variability, cyclones, droughts, and land degradation are escalating, rural women often bear the brunt of environmental shocks.

In Pakistan, these vulnerabilities have become starkly evident in recent years. The country has experienced severe flooding across multiple provinces, pushing millions into poverty and amplifying gender inequalities.  

In Sindh province, the agricultural heartland, the flood damage has been particularly devastating. The Sindh Flood Emergency Housing Reconstruction Project has supported reconstruction of over 410,000 houses and provided cash grants and bank accounts to women, helping to restore dignity and security to flood-affected households. World Bank

Yet beyond infrastructure lies another challenge: ensuring that rural women are not merely passive recipients of aid, but active agents of recovery and transformation.  

The Rural Women of Karachi’s Peripheral Areas

When we speak of “Karachi,” many think of the sprawling metropolis and urban high-rises. But within and around the fringes of Karachi lie rural and peri-urban communities, where women engage in agriculture, small livestock rearing, local trade, weaving, and informal labor. These women often live in low-lying areas, along canals or drainage paths, making them especially vulnerable when floodwaters swell.

In recent floods across Sindh, many rural women in the outskirts of Karachi saw their small plots submerged, livestock swept away, and homes inundated by rainwater and drainage backflow. In some districts, women revived local barter systems, exchanging scrap or goods to meet basic needs after crops were destroyed. Many have lost income sources, and their mobility is constrained by social norms, lack of transport, and caregiving burdens.

Moreover, the aftermath of floods amplifies gendered risks. Studies show that in flood-affected zones, 77 % of women reported limited access to reproductive health or menstrual services, and many teenage girls dropped out of schooling.

Violence and displacement further burden women already marginalized. Thus, rural women in Karachi’s surroundings must be seen through a lens that combines climate, gender, and development.

The Role of Rural Women in Resilience and Recovery

Despite obstacles, rural women are often first responders and knowledge holders. They manage seed banks, preserve traditional crop varieties, and maintain household food security. They care for water systems, trees, and small gardens, contributing to biodiversity and soil health. In flood recovery, women’s local networks, informal savings groups, water committees, kitchen gardens, can speed resilience and rebuild social fabric.

Yet structural barriers remain: limited land ownership, restricted access to credit, technology, markets, and decision-making roles. In Pakistan, rural women’s labor force participation lags far behind men’s, and many of those working remain unpaid or in informal sectors. Addressing these constraints is essential to building flood-resilient rural economies.

What Can We Do to Empower Rural Women?

On this International Day for Rural Women, as we reflect on the interplay of climate disasters and gender, we must move from recognition toward action.

Here are some strategic pathways:

1. Strengthen social protection and gender-sensitive aid: Ensure relief and reconstruction include women’s specific needs, reproductive health kits, safe spaces, and cash transfers directed to female heads of households.
2. Promote women’s inclusive participation in planning: In flood-affected areas, women must be part of local decision-making bodies for water management, disaster planning, and infrastructure design.
3. Expand access to credit, land, and technology: Affordable microfinance, digital tools, and training in climate-smart agriculture can help women diversify income streams.
4. Build local institutions and networks: Support women’s cooperatives, savings groups, and peer networks in rural or peri-urban settings.
5. Education, skills training, and awareness: Provide capacity building in flood-resilient farming, alternate livelihoods, literacy, and advocacy.
6. Promote climate-resilient infrastructure: Construct raised homes, flood-resilient buildings, and drainage systems with participatory design in rural zones.
7. Advocate for gender norms change: Use media, community dialogues, and role models to challenge restrictive norms and support women’s leadership.

Within The Bredo’s mission, we see ourselves as a catalyst for these efforts, connecting rural women of Karachi’s outskirts to resources, networks, and knowledge.

Our founder, Mr. Ali Sohaib, frequently emphasizes that “true resilience is not built by reconstructing buildings alone, but by rebuilding people’s agency.” He stresses the importance of making women not just beneficiaries, but active architects of transformation in their communities.

Let us, on this International Day for Rural Women, renew our commitment: to uplift rural women in Karachi and beyond, in Pakistan and Asia, so that they can lead recovery, shape futures, and stand resilient in the face of flood disasters.