Abstract
In 2009, I2UD wrote a report for the Fifth World Bank Urban Research Symposium analyzing the threats posed by climate change—flooding, extreme weather events, pollution, and coastal erosion—using example studies from Alexandria, Egypt and Cotonou, Benin.
I2UD’s team, led by Mona Serageldin, addressed how climate change strategies must simultaneously address immediate threats, long-term economic health, and important political issues. The report highlighted how resilience strategies were essential in order to build urban preparedness, especially for municipalities with limited resources to protect their economies, housing infrastructure, and service delivery provision. I2UD defined a need for direct urban expansion away from vulnerable areas, and offered to craft development strategies with action plans to address the local challenges of climate change.
Excerpts
[Excerpt: Introduction, p. 1]
“This paper discusses the responses of city authorities to the current and future threats posed by climate change in Alexandria, Egypt and Cotonou, Benin, two port cities facing increasing shoreline erosion, saltwater intrusion and flooding of low-lying areas. Each city has taken some actions to address these challenges but neither has yet developed an overall strategy to build resilience to climate change.”
[Excerpt: Summary]
“Experts have named Alexandria, Egypt and Cotonou, Benin as two cities facing high risks due to the impacts of climate change. City authorities are taking actions to build resilience to the most pressing threats, but they must also employ their limited resources to address economic development, employment generation and service provision. Strategies to address climate change must therefore be linked to immediate threats and politically and economically important issues. In both cities, land management policies and plans must focus on directing further urban expansion away from the most vulnerable, low-lying areas. Moreover, regional development strategies and action plans are needed to address impacts that spill over jurisdictional boundaries and promote coordination.
Key Words: Climate change, resilience, Alexandria, Cotonou, land management.
[Excerpt: Conclusion, p. 15]
“The dynamics of urban growth and land markets make appropriate responses difficult and expensive. As Alexandria and Cotonou grow, vulnerable populations continue to settle in risk-prone areas and future resettlement is even more difficult to contemplate due to the lack of suitable and affordable land, lagging infrastructure and inadequate public transportation. Decision-makers need to adopt land management strategies that will guide growth away from the most flood-prone and hazardous areas. This will require partnership with private developers and NGOs to increase the supply of affordable land for urban expansion and in the case of Cotonou organizing links between formal and informal service providers to extend services to newly urbanized areas yet to be reached by infrastructure networks. It will also require sustained action to control pervasive corruption in the administration of permits issued by subdistrict offices and in the inspectional services that allow violations to continue unabated.”
| Project Year: | 2009 |
| Project Type: | Research Paper |
| Geographic Regions: | Alexandria, Egypt / Cotonou, Benin |
| Reports: | Fifth Urban Research Symposium 2009: “Climate Change in the Local Development Agenda: Promoting Resilience Through Enhanced Understanding of Early Threats” (Final Report) |
| Authors: | Mona Serageldin; Erick Guerra; Christa Lee-Chuvala |
| Sponsors: | World Bank |
| Categories: | Climate Change and Resilience Building |
| ID: | 2009_00_002 |