Disparities in the implementation gap: adaptation to flood risk in the Densu Delta, Accra, Ghana

Abstract

ABSTRACTWhile the need for adaptation in response to the effects of global environmental change impacts in cities has been widely recognised, implementation of appropriate strategies and measures to curb them remains a challenge. In the Densu Delta, west of Accra, multiple phenomena of global environmental change interact together, making adaptation a key strategy for dealing with the increased risk of urban flooding. Implementation of existing policies, however, is scarce. Here we analyse policy arguments concerning strategies to reduce and adapt to urban flooding in key policy documents and contrast them with practitioners’ experiences of implementation in the Densu Delta. Two general mismatches in argumentation are identified that reflect the implementation gap in adaptation to flooding in the Densu Delta. These are a disconnected presentation of the causes, consequences and strategies in policy arguments, and the concealing of undisclosed premises. Undisclosed premises are shown not to speak to the conditions of implementation practice. Consequences for overcoming the implementation gaps are sketched out. The paper contributes to understanding of the implementation gap in adaptation to urban flood risk by applying a lens of argument to environmental policy analysis in an African context.