Adaptation and Health: Are Countries with More Climate-sensitive Health Sectors More Likely to Receive Adaptation Aid?

Weiler Weiler

doi:10.3390/ijerph16081353

Abstract

Climate change poses a severe challenge for many developing countries, and the need to adapt has been widely recognized. Public health is one of the sectors where adaptation is necessary, as a warming climate likely affects general health conditions, the spread of various diseases, etc. Some countries are more affected by such climatic challenges, as their climate sensitivity—both to health-related issues and to climate change in general—is higher. This study examines whether more climate-sensitive countries are more likely to receive support from donors through the relatively new channel of adaptation aid, with a particular focus on the health sector. To investigate this relationship, this study proposes and operationalizes a new indicator to capture climate sensitivity of countries’ health sectors. The results, however, indicate that climate sensitivity does not matter for adaptation aid allocation. Instead, adaptation aid to a large degree follows development aid. In light of the promises repeatedly made by donors in the climate negotiations that adaptation aid should go to the most vulnerable, developing countries should push for a different allocation mechanism of adaptation aid in future negotiation rounds.

Highlights

A certain degree of climate change is no longer avoidable, and some resulting impacts such as a general warming trend, and more local hot and cold weather extremes must be expected
We present the results of the statistical models, with the focus on the health-related variables, the self-constructed Global Burden of Disease (GBD) sensitivity index, and how they affect the likelihood of developing countries of receiving adaptation aid
As can be seen in Models 1 and 3, the health indicators seem to have the expected effect, i.e., countries scoring higher on the GBD sensitivity index are predicted to have a significantly higher likelihood of receiving adaptation aid, while countries with higher health care expenditures are predicted to receive adaptation aid less often

Summary

Introduction

A certain degree of climate change is no longer avoidable, and some resulting impacts such as a general warming trend, and more local hot and cold weather extremes must be expected (and are already occurring). While climatic changes affect all countries, rich and poor, adaptation to climate impacts, ‘the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects’ [1], is of particular significance for developing countries. These countries have contributed the least to global greenhouse gas emissions, yet they are expected to be hit hard by (some) climate change impacts. These countries often do not possess the resources necessary to cope and adapt.

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion