Strategy

There is growing scientific, economic, political, and social consensus that effective climate change adaptation will require long-term planning and explicit consideration of the risks involved at all decision-making levels. Moving beyond isolated climate change risk management initiatives would help reduce associated mal-adaptation costs and secure additional financing to meet the remaining costs of adaptation.

To achieve the kind of transformational change that is required, climate change risks need to be routinely considered as part of poverty reduction and sector-specific strategies, policies, and measures. The present programme, entitled Supporting Integrated and Comprehensive Approaches to Climate Change Adaptation in Africa, intends to establish such a dynamic and enduring approach to adaptation that cuts across sectors.

The goal of the programme is to assist developing countries in securing and expanding national development gains under a changing climate. The objective is for 21 African countries to adjust their national development processes to incorporate climate change risks and opportunities.

This programme approach will provide two avenues of support to countries: a National Component, and an Inter-Regional Technical Support Component.

National Component
Countries will receive direct support to help them develop the planning mechanisms, institutions, policies, financial options, and knowledge base needed to respond to climate change in the years to come. Each national project will be developed in close consultation with relevant stakeholders and tailored to meet specific country climate circumstances and needs. The 21 participating countries are: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Zambia.

Inter-Regional Technical Support Component
This component will provide a coherent and integrated package of support to the programme countries to help link country projects together to ensure they all benefit from and contribute to a much wider knowledge base based on best practices. The platform is inter-regional because it spans two of UNDP’s geographic regions: sub-Saharan Africa, led by the Regional Bureau for Africa (RBA), and the Arab States bordering the Mediterranean Sea, led by the Regional Bureau for Arab States (RBAS). This technical support will be key for delivering expertise, training, and tools to countries as they develop and implement their country projects.