A Theoretical Framework for Climate Vulnerability and Gendered Livelihoods in South Sudan: An Intersectional Analysis of Politics and Finance in Selected Regions (2021-2026)

This theoretical article addresses a critical gap in understanding how intersecting political and financial structures mediate climate vulnerability for women in South Sudan’s gendered livelihood systems. It interrogates why, despite escalating climate extremes, existing responses fail to address the disproportionate burdens borne by women, particularly in securing energy for household and productive uses. The article develops a novel analytical framework by synthesising feminist political ecology with critical finance studies. This synthesis provides an intersectional analysis to deconstruct how power relations and financial flows—such as those within entrenched political patronage and conflict economies—produce a maldistribution of climate finance. Consequently, this nexus systematically restricts women’s access to sustainable energy solutions and marginalises them from decision-making, thereby reinforcing pre-existing inequalities. The framework’s rigour is strengthened by engaging with African epistemic perspectives, drawing on scholarly critiques of Eurocentric climate governance to foreground the socio-political production of risk. By moving beyond technocratic solutions, the framework offers a vital analytical tool for researchers and policymakers aiming to design equitable, context-sensitive interventions that target the root causes of gendered vulnerability in South Sudan’s evolving climate landscape.