Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation into Development Planning in Ghana

Raymond Aitibasa Atanga,Emmanuel Kanchebe Derbile,Daniel K. B. Inkoom

doi:10.4314/gjds.v14i2.11

Abstract

This paper argues that sustainable development outcomes under climate change are the products of planned adaptation processes involving mainstreaming. The paper examines the extent to which climate change adaptation has been mainstreamed into development planning at the local level in Ghana. Ubiquitous drought and flood disasters in many areas in Ghana are manifestations that climate change can undermine or even reverse the success and sustainability of development interventions. Projections show that the frequency and severity of climate change induced disasters in Ghana will increase overtime. Apparently, the need to mainstream climate change adaptation into development planning at the national and sub-national levels cannot be ignored. In this vein, using the qualitative research approach involving the use of in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and content analysis of district development plans and annual reports, the study found that the mainstreaming of climate change at the district level in Ghana was at the elementary stage, which constitutes awareness creation. As a result, district development plans failed to address climate change adaptation adequately. The paper concludes that there is the need to raise awareness and build local institutional capacities for mainstreaming climate change adaptation for sustainable development in Ghana. Keywords : Climate Change, Mainstreaming, Development planning, Adaptation, Ghana

Highlights

Climate change is the greatest contemporary global threat to sustainable development, and the risks associated with climate change will become more severe over time
The qualitative approach is ideal for this study because climate change adaptation issues are descriptive in nature and perceptions and experience of people with regard to the climatic stresses are pertinent for understanding the different modes of adaptation
At the local level, the study found that not much has been achieved in mainstreaming climate change into district level development plans

Summary

Introduction

Climate change is the greatest contemporary global threat to sustainable development, and the risks associated with climate change will become more severe over time. The 2007 flood disaster in Northern Ghana killed 31 people, displaced 102, 208 persons and destroyed 7,152 hectares of crops, 45 schools, 39 dams, 542 km of feeder roads and 58 bridges and culverts in the Upper East Region alone (NADMOUER, 2008). In 2010, floods hit the Upper East Region destroying 3,877.9 hectares of crops and 5,512 houses and displaced 34,553 persons (NADMO-UER, 2010). In the Kassena-Nankana West District, 14,874 people were displaced by the 2010 floods (NADMO-UER, 2010). To address the daunting challenges posed by climate change, policy design and implementation processes need cautious and collaborative crafting that respond to the needs of people at risk of climate change. The strategies required for the enhancement of adaptive capacity are essentially equivalent to those promoting sustainable development

Methods

Results

Conclusion