Climate change adaptation for river deltas in Africa and South Asia
Citation: Lwasa S. A systematic review of research on climate change adaptation policy and practice in Africa and South Asia deltas. Regional Environmental Change. 2015;15:815–24.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: Yes.
Funding sources: Nothing noted.
What is this? Climate change increases the risk of flooding in low-elevated coastal zones. This is especially problematic for densely populated river deltas.
In this systematic review, the author searched for articles about the state of adaptation policy and practice in river deltas located in Africa and South Asia. The author searched for studies published between 2006 and 2013 in any language, and found 85 records.
What was found: Research on adaptation of deltas to climate change is limited. Several factors influence the vulnerability of large river deltas to climate change, including, but not limited to, population density, resources and extraction activities, infrastructure development, and coastal elevation. Adaptation actions were biased towards development sectors and not integrated from household to community levels.
Implications: The author of the review stated that there was a need for better documentation and transparency in adaptation activities in deltas, as well as long-term strategies that address systemic problems and enable communities to claim new rights in protected areas. Localised and community-driven approaches to adaptation are important, as well as integration of adaptation efforts across different sectors and levels of governance.
Other considerations: The author of the review did not discuss his findings in the context of issues relating to health equity.
This summary was prepared by Riwa Deghaim, checked by Sneha Bhadti, and finalized by William Summerskill.