economic, humanitarian and environmental factors, affecting 45 million people.338 In March 2017, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2349 on the need to address climate-related risks in order to tackle the conflict in the Lake Chad basin.339 The Deputy Secretary General in July 2018 recognised the unfavourable effects of climate change on stability in West Africa, the Sahel and the Horn of Africa.340 Women tend to have deeper interactions with natural based resources and activates for food, water, health, subsistence farming in their provident, occupational or caregiving roles.. When conflict results in displacement, women refugees of IDPs face hazards when looking for food and water and many fall prey to abductions and sexual violence. Situations of drought, famine affect women disproportionately as they are primarily involved in agriculture and subsistence farming and where water management program do not practice equity, they are greatly disadvantaged. The UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation points to the gendered differences in enjoyment of this human right as a function of socioeconomic differences between men and women341 and emphasises that without women’s involvement in decision making, these situations cannot be resolved.342 Without deliberate efforts to improve women’s leadership and participation in water management structures, policies and plans, women’s priority user needs will not be met.343 Adaptative capacities that build resilience to conflict are largely linked to governance mechanisms such as early warning systems. Some of the constraints to adaptive capacity of communities relate to marginalisation on the political front, poverty and bad governance. Developing early warning systems that are gender inclusive is important as without integrating gender priorities in governance systems, women risk being further marginalised by climate change. The growing body of literature on climate 338 United Nations ‘Fragile countries risk being ‘stuck in a cycle of conflict and climate disaster,’ Security Council told’. Available at https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/07/1014411, 11 July 2018 339 UNSCR Resolution 2349 (2017) 31 March 2017 340 United Nations ‘Fragile countries risk being ‘stuck in a cycle of conflict and climate disaster,’ Security Council told’. Available at https://news.un.org/en/story/2018/07/1014411, 11 July 2018 341 United Nations Human Rights ‘Gender Equality’. Available at https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/WaterAndSanitation/SRWater/Pages/GenderEquality.aspx 342 UN Human Rights ‘Statement by the Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation at the 33rd session of the Human Rights Council’ 6 September 2016. Available at https://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20877&LangID=E 343 UNDP, Water Governance Facility ‘Gender Practice in Water Governance Programmes’ Water Governance Facility Report No 4 106