Gendered food insecurity: achieving SDG 2 for climate-affected women in rural economies

This article examines systemic and structural governance barriers to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2) for rural women in climate-affected regions of the Global South, using Ghana and Bangladesh as focal countries. While the centrality of women's roles in food systems is acknowledged in literature, intersecting gender inequalities, climate vulnerability, and institutional blind spots continue to marginalise rural women within food security and adaptation policies. The study employs an integrative literature review and interpretive qualitative content analysis, grounded in an intersectional and rights-based analytical framework, to synthesise how gender, land tenure, climate exposure, economic informality, and policy recognition are addressed within SDG 2–related scholarship and policy documents. The focal countries provide illustrative reference contexts that help the analysis identify recurring patterns and omissions that constrain gender-responsive food systems governance. The review indicates that the absence of appropriate policy frameworks is not the major impediment to achieving SDG 2 goals. Still, rather fragmented institutional framing, including gender-blind adaptation strategies, insecure land governance, undervaluation of informal labour, and weak participatory accountability, are the greater impediments to success. The study concludes by outlining governance-oriented policy implications for aligning SDG 2 implementation with gender equity and climate resilience.