Planned experiments or autonomous adaptation? An assessment of initiatives for climate change adaptation at the local level in Ghana

Abstract

There are increasing concerns about the likely impacts of climate change on poverty, economic growth, and the overall development of poor countries. The need to adapt to the daunting challenges posed by climate change has resulted in a multiplicity of responses from various actors across scales. Evidence suggests that at the national and sub-national levels in Ghana, initiatives to address climate change are nascent. The objective of this paper is to uncover the nature of these initiatives, the actors involved and the successes and challenges for achieving sustainable outcomes through local-level interventions in Ghana. The paper adopted the qualitative cross-sectional case study design involving the use of key informant interviews, observations, focus group discussions and institutional reports. The findings suggest that initiatives for adaptation to climate change were largely autonomous since they were not necessarily outcomes from mainstream planning aimed at addressing climate change. Key actors behind the initiatives were governmental institutions, agencies, non-governmental organisations, and community leaders. The paper recommends that further efforts be made to integrate climate change adaptation initiatives at the local level of planning for proper targeting, coordination, collaboration, and sustainable adaptation.