GHANA: CLIMATE CHANGE RISK COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR COASTAL URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY

This briefing describes a project led by the Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS) at the University of Ghana, funded by CDKN, to integrate climate risk analysis and disaster risk reduction into the development planning of Ghana's coastal cities. The project utilized community-based participatory methods and the CRiSTAL tool to identify vulnerabilities and inform policy at local, district, and national levels.

• The project aimed to address the lack of a comprehensive framework for managing climate-related risks in Ghana's coastal environments, where a quarter of the population lives in coastal cities and faces vulnerabilities such as flooding, infrastructure loss, and settlement displacement.
• The initiative employed a community-based approach involving six communities (three urban and three peri-urban), using the Community Based Risk Screening Tool – Adaptation and Livelihoods (CRiSTAL) to assess climate change impacts and identify social and economic vulnerabilities and internal community resources.
• Project outcomes include the creation of rapid community-based disaster preparedness plans by three focal communities and the training of 40 local leaders in climate vulnerability assessment methods. These local plans are intended to inform district, regional, and national disaster management planning.
• The project culminated in a national policy roundtable in Accra, where findings were shared with the National Development Planning Commission and the Ministries of Local Government; Water Resources, Works and Housing; and Environment, Science and Technology. Early indications suggest the project will influence Ghana's emerging climate finance framework and coastal development planning.
• As part of a comparative learning approach, the project shared its policy findings with research, scientific, and policy communities in Nigeria through the University of Calabar (UNICAL) in late 2012.

APA

Climate and Development Knowledge Network (2013). GHANA: CLIMATE CHANGE RISK COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR COASTAL URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Ghana-Coastal-Resilience_-Project-brief_May-2013final.pdf

Chicago

Climate and Development Knowledge Network. GHANA: CLIMATE CHANGE RISK COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR COASTAL URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY. 2013. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Ghana-Coastal-Resilience_-Project-brief_May-2013final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |title=GHANA: CLIMATE CHANGE RISK COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR COASTAL URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY |date=May 2013 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Ghana-Coastal-Resilience_-Project-brief_May-2013final.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climateanddevelopmentknowledgenetwork2013ghana, author = {{Climate and Development Knowledge Network}}, title = {{GHANA: CLIMATE CHANGE RISK COMMUNICATIONS FRAMEWORK FOR COASTAL URBAN DEVELOPMENT POLICY}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2013}, month = may, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Ghana-Coastal-Resilience_-Project-brief_May-2013final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }