ASSAR's work in Namibia

Semi-arid regions like north-central Namibia, are highly dynamic systems that experience variable and sometimes extreme climates, adverse environmental change, and a relative paucity of and decline in natural resources. Historically, people living in these regions have adopted several coping mechanisms to deal with these conditions. Today, however, many communities exhibit low levels of adaptive capacity due to challenges such as marginalisation, underdevelopment, poverty, inequality, weak governance, maladaptive policies, and increasing population growth. Climate change is expected to augment existing levels of vulnerability, as temperatures rise, rainfall decreases, and seasonal climate patterns become more variable.

From 2014-2018, ASSAR’s Namibia team worked in the Onesi Constituency in the Omusati region of Namibia to better understand these existing and upcoming challenges. Made up of a team of researchers and practitioners from the University of Namibia, University of Cape Town, Oxfam GB and the Desert Research Foundation Namibia, we worked with stakeholders from national to household levels to understand what makes people vulnerable to climate change, what the barriers to adaptation are, and what could enable more effective, sustained and widespread adaptation to climate change.

Adaptation policy approaches should consider that factors like gender, ethnicity, age, household composition, marital status, social capital, and class are important determinants of people’s vulnerabilities, and of their capacities to respond to climate risks and impacts. These intersecting factors need to be considered explicitly to enable the most marginalised to adapt.

Building on Namibia’s decentralised water reform, water and drought governance could be strengthened if there was a better understanding of and support for local challenges. This could be partly achieved by increasing the awareness and willingness of decision makers to be more inclusive of the knowledge that community members and other marginalised groups provide, building the capacity of local actors to proactively engage in governance, and by providing more targeted support for managing water better at the village level.

Improved collaboration – among government, non-governmental organisations, academia and communities – can lead to the production of climate and adaptation information that is reliable and relevant to local subsistence farmers. It can also ensure that this is disseminated to those who need it in a timely manner.

By engaging with traditional and religious leaders, and considering their value systems, adaptation policy makers and practitioners can promote adaptation responses that work in conjunction with cultural and social norms. Doing so will assist in helping to reduce group-specific vulnerabilities. This should also be done on a case-by-case basis considering the implications of these social norms on gender equality and human rights more broadly.

More long-term, targeted responses to climate change are needed. Government needs to support people’s livelihoods by building adaptive capacity, providing vocational training and jobs, and creating markets. These efforts must also lead to rural development processes that address water scarcity, food insecurity, and human development needs.