How can municipal governments in low- and middle-income nations prepare for and adapt to the increasing risks posed by climate change? This paper, published by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, indicates that most adaptation to the likely climate change-related dangers over the next few decades fits well within a local development agenda. There needs to be a significant increase in development funding to help local governments adapt to climate change challenges.
The urban poor are most at risk from the increased intensity and frequency of storms, flooding, landslides and heat waves that climate change is causing or will cause. City and municipal governments have the main responsibilities for planning, implementing and managing most of the measures that can diminish these risks – through provision of infrastructure and services, disaster preparedness and the planning and regulatory framework. The backlog in the population lacking provision for infrastructure and services continues to grow in most urban centres in low-income nations, as the powers and resources available to city or municipal governments bear little relation to their responsibilities. Lack of local governance quality affects provision for infrastructure and disaster-preparedness and planning for and coordinating disaster-response.
The key to adaptation in most instances is competent, capable, accountable urban governments that understand how to incorporate adaptation measures into most aspects of their work and departments. Many needed measures may seem to be quite minor adjustments to current practices – for instance in adjusting building codes, land sub-division regulations, land-use management and infrastructure standards – but the sum of all the minor adjustments over time can build greater resilience without high costs. Further findings are that:
- There is a very large overlap between most of the measures needed for adaptation and local development (especially improving and extending provision for piped water, good sanitation and drainage, solid waste collection, garbage disposal, prevention-focused health care and support for upgrading within informal settlements).
- There are also significant overlaps between climate-change adaptation and building resilience to extreme weather/disasters.
- Adaptation measures can be incorporated into a strong local development plan that provides the framework for future investments and land use management. Few urban centres have such a plan, however, and even where such a plan exists, many new investments, urban developments and buildings fall outside it.
Support for adaptation to climate change needs to consider the financial systems and mechanisms that will facilitate many different innovations by local governments and by grassroots organisations – and that will reinforce ‘good local development’ and ‘good local governance’. It is also important to draw on ‘disaster-preparedness’ understandings, such as the extent to which ‘natural’ disasters are preventable (because the actual disaster has much to do with inadequate planning and infrastructure and lower-income groups having no alternative but to live in high risk areas). Development-adaptation funding programmes should include:
- Building local capacity to produce sound adaptation programmes and to help municipalities become more responsive to population groups most at-risk of climate change disasters.
- Providing development assistance to central government, which often opposes increased powers and responsibilities at the local level.
- Management of the inevitable difficulties of funding to cities controlled by the political opposition.
- Long-term development commitment to ensure the creation of practical and useful adaptation programmes.
