The triple threat: the interwoven impact of climate vulnerability, income Inequality, and gender parity on educational access and outcomes

While prior research has examined the individual effects of climate vulnerability, income inequality, and gender disparity on education, limited research has addressed how these factors interact across different education levels in developing countries. Most existing work also focuses narrowly on access, completion, or a single socioeconomic factor, lacking a multidimensional and dynamic analysis. Hence, this study investigates the intersections of climate vulnerability, income inequality, and gender parity in educational access through a multidimensional analysis of structural barriers to educational outcomes. Using data from 132 developing countries over the period 2009 to 2023, the analysis employs the Prais-Winsten Corrected Standard Errors (PCSE). The findings revealed growth in secondary and tertiary enrollments but a decline in primary enrollment. At the same time, graduation rates at all levels are increasing. This indicates that although enrollment numbers may be declining, the students who do enroll are increasingly likely to remain in school and finish their education. This trend may reflect a shift in focus by many governments and organizations from merely increasing enrollment to ensuring that students complete their education. Similarly, the threats of climate vulnerability and income inequality are declining, while gender parity is increasing. Furthermore, climate vulnerability, income inequality, and gender disparity are hindering primary and tertiary education enrollment rates; however, there is no evidence of such effects on secondary education enrollment rates. Moreover, these factors are adversely affecting graduation rates at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels, although the impact on secondary graduation rates is weak.