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Project

Pathways to Resilience in Semi-Arid Economies
 

Pakistan
Tajikistan
Project ID
107643
Total Funding
CAD 13,394,735.00
IDRC Officer
Evans Kituyi
Project Status
Completed
End Date
Duration
57 months

Programs and partnerships

Climate Change

Lead institution(s)

Project leader:
Dr. Abid Suleri
Pakistan

Project leader:
Dr. Emmah T. Liwenga
Tanzania

Project leader:
Eva Ludi
United Kingdom

Project leader:
Mamadou Bara Gueye
Senegal

Project leader:
Samuel Fankhauser
United Kingdom

Summary

How can populations become resilient to climate change while pursuing economic growth? This question is at the heart of a research project designed to support climate-resilient economic development in semi-arid lands.Read more

How can populations become resilient to climate change while pursuing economic growth? This question is at the heart of a research project designed to support climate-resilient economic development in semi-arid lands. It will do so by addressing the conditions for economic growth and considering the needs of women and marginalized groups.

Leading change on climate change adaptation
Five consortium partners will implement the project in six countries: Burkina Faso, Kenya, Pakistan, Senegal, Tajikistan, and Tanzania. These countries all have large, economically crucial semi-arid lands, where water scarcity shapes ecosystems and social and economic opportunities.

The partners include:
-Overseas Development Institute
-Innovations
-Environnement et Développement en Afrique
-Center for Climate Change Studies at the University of Dar es Salaam
-Grantham Research Institute at London School of Economics
-Sustainable Development Policy Institute

A vision for the future
The consortium's vision of climate-resilient development includes development that tackles poverty and maximizes people's capacity to adapt to climate change, while also expecting that change is needed to implement this vision. The research program is designed to produce evidence that will support this change.

Research methodology
The research will identify:
-different enabling factors of economic development;
-where they fail to meet the needs and aspirations of poor and marginalized people;
-whether they increase people's vulnerability to climate change; and
-which of these key factors might be affected by climate change and how.

The researchers will take a transdisciplinary approach to assess how to resolve trade-offs between these different dimensions to support climate-resilient development.

From research to policy
The research results will advise policymakers and decision-makers contemplating uncertain interactions between climate change and economic development in fragile semi-arid lands. The researchers will engage with business leaders, economic ministries, and regional economic communities to create new knowledge and to translate this knowledge into policies and investments. Their goal is to help reduce poverty and strengthen adaptive capacity.

Research outputs

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Article
Language:

English

Summary

This study analyzes the relationship between land use units and natural and anthropogenic factors of the Senegal River delta. Remote sensing and GIS data, Landsat images (1977, 1988, 1999, 2006, 2014) show an expansion rate of vegetation cover (64%) crop areas (6.77%), surface water (4%) and regression of salted areas (74.69%) and dune (15.62%) between 1977 and 2014. Increases are due mainly to irrigation schemes, population growth, protection policies and conservation of natural resources. Regressions are related to the development of the agricultural sector and the importance of rainfall-limiting biophysical processes. The article analyzes the data.

Author(s)
Aissatou Toure, Mame
Paper
Language:

English

Summary

This report presents the findings of a rapid review to determine the policies and politics that have shaped irrigation practice and performance in Tanzania over the past 40–50 years. The review seeks to understand drivers (and blockages) of change with respect to improving sector performance and to identify opportunities for innovation. We also consider who has benefited and lost from public investments, and how these investments could better contribute to poverty reduction, economic growth and climate resilience. The focus of the analysis is small-scale irrigation schemes managed by farmers and supported by the state. We are particularly interested in the role irrigation plays in contexts characterised by high rainfall variability and increasing (physical or economic) water scarcity, such as the upper Rufiji Basin. The desk-based review was supplemented with in-country interviews at national and district level (Iringa), and brief site visits to three schemes in the Ruaha sub-catchment of the Rufiji (also Iringa district).

Author(s)
Oates, Naomi
Book
Language:

English

Summary

Exploring regional cooperation becomes essential for successful implementation of sustainable development goals (SDG) in South Asia. The book covers aspects of peacebuilding, public policy and leadership, fiscal policy and how to secure economic sustainability. Most countries in the region face problems including poverty, corruption, and inter and intra- state conflicts, political instability and challenges related to climate change. Water governance and the dynamics of social justice each have their own section in the book. Terrorism and post-conflict accountability feature in section four. The availability and access to reliable data and information remain major concerns in South Asia.

Dossiers
Language:

French

Summary
Author(s)
Wetta, Claude
Paper
Language:

English

Summary

The paper argues that strong socio-cultural orientations around gender roles and resource access confine female-led micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to sectors that experience higher exposure to climate risk, most notably agriculture. These factors also trigger more pronounced barriers to building resilience within female-led businesses, including reduced access to land, capital, markets, new technology and educational opportunities. Social networks, such as women’s groups and micro banking initiatives, appear to be crucial adaptation tools. MSMEs are critical in developing country economies. Accounting for about 80% of total employment, they provide most livelihood opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa.

Author(s)
Atela, Joanes
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About the partnership

Partnership(s)

Collaborative Adaptation Research Initiative in Africa and Asia

Some parts of the world are especially vulnerable to the extreme effects of climate change.