Gender and climate financing in non-self-governing territories: the case of Western Sahara

Purpose This study aims to address an explicit gap in the literature on climate finance in conflict contexts. This research examines global and regional climate financing laws, incorporating gender and refugee status considering the case of Western Sahara, a non-self-governing territory (NSGT) pending decolonisation. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a qualitative that applies critical content analysis to 30 global and regional (African) climate finance instruments. The analytical lens drew on regulatory ecology (laws) and critical public policy analysis, based on which systematic manual coding was conducted, recording both the presence and form of normative treatment, enabling cross-instrument comparison and the detection of structural regularities. Findings Climate finance laws insufficiently address the intersection of gender, refugee status and conflict, configuring a structural gap between normative discourse and institutional architecture. Although laws and policies proclaim principles of equity, differentiated responsibility and human rights, the institutional architecture systematically reproduces exclusions in conflict contexts, particularly among refugee populations and gender inequalities. Research limitations/implications This study focuses exclusively on law (hard and soft law) and does not analyse technical documents specific to climate finance mechanisms or the other dimensions of regulatory ecology. While recognising their importance and interdependence, this work proposes an advance in theoretical debates on climate finance in conflict-affected and colonially unresolved contexts, leaving the door open for continued exploration through empirical works examining the other dimensions of regulatory ecology. Originality/value The paper addresses an original and underexplored topic by examining climate finance, gender, refugee status and non-self-governing territory status through the case of Western Sahara.