The numbers are glaring, yet they offer only a partial picture of the lived realities in Gaza, particularly
for women and girls. Due to continuous displacement and rapidly changing conditions, genderdisaggregated data is extremely limited. The data that does exist is fragmented, resulting in a lack of
cohesive narrative of the worsening situation for women and girls in Gaza. History clearly tells us that
women and girls are disproportionately impacted by food insecurity and famine, with long-term, intergenerational consequences.19 20 21 To limit the devastating impact of food insecurity and famine in Gaza,
there is an urgent need to understand how women and girls are experiencing, navigating, and affected
by this crisis.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE
This report was conceived of in May 2025 in
response to escalating aid restrictions and the
introduction of militarized food distribution
mechanisms in Gaza. Originally intended as a rapid
gender analysis of food insecurity, the objective and
scope of the report evolved to respond to the rapidly
deteriorating situation in Gaza. When data collection
began in early August 2025, the research objectives
had expanded, with the aim of providing an indepth understand of how women and girls in Gaza
experience, navigate, and are disproportionately
impacted by starvation, famine, and the collapse of
essential support systems.
Drawing on secondary data, key informant
interviews (KIIs) with international NGO (INGO) staff,
and frontline workers, as well as testimonies from
women in Gaza, this report illustrates how famine is
unfolding for women, particularly in terms of hunger
and starvation, limited access to aid, intersecting
vulnerabilities, and long-term physical and mental
health impacts.
The report’s findings provide a rare window into
the lived realities of food insecurity and famine,
with personal and expert insights from frontline
and international humanitarian workers. Women’s
testimonies are set alongside institutional data
to capture the gender dimensions of macro-level
trends. In doing so, this report provides actionable
evidence for policymakers and humanitarian actors
and offers recommendations for urgent relief,
protection, and long-term recovery that center the
voices, needs, and leadership of Gaza’s women.
Credit: SOH
8