What is needed to respond to the changing West African climate?
There is a great need to start supporting community-based adaptation activities. This was discussed during a West Africa Learning Event in Cotonou, Benin in early September of this year. Participants from 12 West African countries came together to discuss the urgent need for increased capacity and resources to respond to the uncertain and changing climate in the region.
More than 70 participants gathered to join the learning-event. People came from NGOs, research and government organisations, and everyone shared their work and together reflected on success factors and constraints in current community-based practices and policies in different contexts. This led to the production of top priority recommendations.
To respond effectively to increasing temperatures, droughts, reduced rainfall as well as floods across West Africa, greater efforts are needed in ensuring:
- Approaches which are gender sensitive
- Relevant climate information and communication systems are accessible to the most vulnerable
- Strengthened adaptive capacity of the most vulnerable, recognising the contribution of women and youth
- Support to community adaptation planning and decision making, integrated into local development planning, disaster risk reduction and early warning systems
Improved monitoring and evaluation, documentation and flexible financing are essential to enable these priority actions, together with stronger linkages and learning platforms among development actors, researchers and policy makers across West Africa.
A conference communiqué is now available (PDF).
The event was hosted by the Adaptation Learning Programme of CARE International, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) West Africa and the ENDA Energy, Environment and Development Department.
Participants came from: Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Gambia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Togo in West Africa and from Kenya and UK.
Learn more about West Africa: New report reveals how climate change will hit the region
This story was put together by Fiona Percy, Coordinator of Adaptation Learning Program (ALP) of CARE International.
