IHO calls on OAS Nations to Reaffirm Commitment to Climate and Gender Justice

As Antigua and Barbuda prepares to host the upcoming 55th Regular Session of the General Assembly of the Organisation of American States (OAS) from June 25th-27th under the theme, “Building resilient, inclusive economies in the Americas”, Integrated Health Outreach Inc. (IHO), which is taking part as a civil society organisation (CSO), is calling on all nations in the America’s to use this Session to reaffirm their commitment to climate justice, gender justice and the equitable inclusion of civil society in both national and regional decision-making.

Across the Americas, indigenous communities, rural farmers, low-income urban populations, women and children, migrants, and displaced persons are experiencing the impacts of climate change disproportionately as a result of unique vulnerabilities that make it harder for them to adapt, or make it less likely that they will receive the support necessary to enable them to do so. Executive Director of IHO, Dr. Nicola Bird, called it “an urgent and pressing reality that requires unrelenting action from both government and civil society”.

Speaking on Wednesday as the major conference began at the American University of Antigua (AUA) Conference Centre, Dr. Bird reminded, “Women, especially in rural areas, often bear the brunt of climate change due to their roles in food production and caregiving to youth and the elderly. This is why when times get harder due to drought, or floods, or natural disasters, they often face increased workloads and reduced access to support and opportunities.”

Across the Americas, especially for the lowest-earning, marginalised and most vulnerable communities, climate change is having ever more serious impacts on access to water, the ability to farm, biodiversity, the frequency and severity of droughts, rains and floods, the intensity of heatwaves, the prevalence of wildfires, and the prevalence of pests and associated diseases. These, in turn, have impacts on livelihoods, the agricultural sector, numerous other industries, housing, public health, public services, and the availability of resources and finances to drive development.

In Antigua and Barbuda IHO has been working to help women and vulnerable communities adapt in the face of climate change, for example, through a pilot project that assists rural women farmers through access to technology, and through another project focused on building climate resilience among residents by introducing them to more resilient livelihood practices that are sustainable and eco-friendly.

IHO is also building a network of community, civil society, private sector and public sector actors to stand against gender-based violence (GBV) through the IHO-GBV Coalition. Gender-based violence is a gross violation of human rights, a public health crisis, an obstacle to sustainable development, and a scourge that societies often do too little to address. On International Women’s Day 2025, the IHO-GBV Coalition, in partnership with the national Directorate of Gender Affairs (DoGA) in Antigua and Barbuda, hosted the 2nd Stop Gender-Based Violence awareness and advocacy walk, mobilising more than 2000 people to stand and speak out against GBV.

Communications Officer, Kieron Murdoch, stated, “If we are serious about building resilient, inclusive economies in the Americas and mean that as something more than just a passing slogan, then improving on our national gender policies as well as increasing the resources for state and civil society programmes that address gender-based violence must be key. There is no true vision of sustainable development that does not have at its core the principles of gender equality and human dignity.”

GBV remains a critical problem throughout the Americas. Data on GBV in Latin America and the Caribbean for example, published by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2021, has shown that despite the progress made in addressing GBV over the decades, still, one-quarter of women ages 15-49 in Latin America and the Caribbean have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime with rates ranging from 16%-42% across these countries. Other sources note as well that some countries in the Americas region have femicide rates that are amongst the highest globally.

IHO will be one of many CSOs attending the 55th Regular Session of the General Assembly of the OAS. IHO continues to be active in representing the interests of civil society at major forums, having recently joined other CSOs at the UN for the 2025 SIDS Civil Society Engagement Forum, and having served as the lead CSO within the SIDS4 CSO Coalition ahead of the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) in Antigua in May 2024.