Burkina Faso staging

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY[edit | edit source]

An analysis of the development of national adaptation programmes of action on climate change (NAPA) in the least developed countries (LDC) illustrates that NAPAs are beset by difficulties, during both formulation and implementation:

  • delays in their formulation;
  • failure to take due account of climate change in development > policies and strategies;
  • insufficient funding during implementation.

However, adaptation to climate change is no longer a choice; it is the only option in the quest for sustainable development and a process which effectively includes all stakeholders needs to be set in motion in order to address the root causes of climate change. Burkina Faso has an advantage over many other LDC, in that its NAPA, adopted in 2007, has been implemented under three projects with technical and financial support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Kingdom of Denmark, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and Japan. It capitalised on that advantage and put it to good use when the national climate change adaptation programme (NAP) was formulated, by applying the exerptise from NAPA projects.

Generally speaking, NAPA have been unable to convince backers to finance them. There is clearly an urgent need at present to adopt a new programming framework (NAP) in addition to the NAPA already adopted to respond to the need for urgent adaptation. This new vision adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has the advantage of ensuring that better account is taken of climate change in development policies and strategies and of bringing backers on board who fund climate change adaptation. In other words, in theory an NAP has a better chance of being funded and thus implemented than an NAPA.

The objectives of an NAP are to (i) reduce vulnerability to the impact of climate change by developing adaptation and resilience capabilities; (ii) facilitate the integration of climate change adaptation into new or existing policies, programmes or activities and in specific development planning processes and strategies in pertinent sectors and at various levels in a coherent manner.

It ultimately results in a reference document containing practical information with a view to helping to:

  • reduce the vulnerability of natural, social and economic systems to climate change;
  • integrate climate change adaptation into current or future development policies and strategies.

The vision of the Burkina Faso NAP reads as follows: "Burkina Faso intends to manage its economic and social development more efficiently by implementing planning mechanisms and measures taking account of resilience and adaptation to climate change between now and 2050".

The long-term adaptation objectives based on that vision are to:

  • protect accelerated growth pillars;
  • ensure sustainable food and nutrition security;
  • preserve water resources and improve access to sanitation;
  • protect persons and goods from extreme climate events and natural disasters;
  • protect and improve the functioning of natural ecosystems;
  • protect and improve public health.

The Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted decision 5/CP.17 on national adaptation plans (NAP) at its 17th session held in Durban (South Africa) on 11 December 2011 in order to help LDC take better account of climate change in their development policies and strategies.Burkina Faso decided to prepare an NAP in response to that decision. In order to do so, a multidisciplinary team of experts with expertise in the following sectors was set up at national level to formulate the NAP: (i) agriculture; (ii) animal production; (iii) environment and natural resources; (iv) meteorology; (v) energy; (vi) health; (vii) infrastructure and housing; (viii) women's associations; (ix) civil society organisations. The team of experts is listed in the annex. In order to take account of water security, the NAP took account of the written input received from the Global Water Partnership West Africa and the Burkina National Water Partnership, both of which offered to help with national coordination of NAPA projects by providing a water consultant and cofinancing workshops with stakeholders.


The NAP was formulated with very close attention to institutional, technical and financial aspects. The Mathematical Equation Analysis Laboratory (LAME) of the University of Ouagadougou (UO), with support from the NAPA-BKF-UNDP/Japan project entitled 'Improving capacities to take better account of climate change-related concerns during the preparation and implementation of development plans, programmes and projects', prepared climate forecasts for Burkina Faso up to 2100 and evaluated the vulnerability of various development sectors. The Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development set up a technical committee to monitor formulation of the NAP through the Permanent Secretariat of the National Council for the Environment and Sustainable Development (PS/CONEDD).


The following were established in detail for each development sector: (i) structural vulnerability; (ii) priority adaptation sectors; (iii) court-, medium- and long-term adaptation measures; (iv) a five-year adaptation action plan; (v) the cost of adaptation measures over a period of between 1 and 15 years.

The Burkina Faso NAP comprises (i) adaptation plans for each development sector and (ii) a global adaptation plan for the entire country. The action plans for the various sectors are summarised below:


The objectives of the action plan for each sector are as follows:

Development sector Specific objectives of action plan
Agriculture SO 1: Recuperate and restore the fertility of degraded land


SO 2: Improve access for farmers to high quality agricultural production factors (equipment, inputs, land, results of agricultural research etc.)


SO 3: Improve the resilience of stakeholders to climate change


SO 4: Develop early warning systems to ensure efficient management of climate variability and change
Animal production SO 1: Improve the security of pastoral activities through better dissemination and exploitation of information on pastoral resources and associated access.


SO 2: Ensure the security of animal capital with a view to supporting the pastoral economy on a sustainable basis and improve the resilience of stakeholders in order to achieve sustainable food security in Burkina Faso


SO 3: Reduce the vulnerability of farmers to climate change and contribute to local economic development
Environment and natural resources SO 1: Increase productivity and the resilience of ecosystems


SO 2: Improve biodiversity conservation


SO 3: Improve research and ecological monitoring


SO 4: Reduce GG emissions
Energy SO 1: Reduce the impact of climate change on the energy sector


SO 2: Ensure a sustainable supply of energy for cooking


SO 3: Reduce electricity consumption


SO 4: Gain more knowledge into the impact of climate change on the energy sector
Health SO 1: Ensure leadership and governance in terms of adapting to the impacts of climate change on the health sector


SO 2: Increase human resources in the health sector skilled in adapting to the effects of climate change


SO 3: Improve the early warning system and the response to climate change-related phenomena


SO 4: Adapt health infrastructure to the effects of climate change


SO 5: Improve research in the field of climate change
Infrastructure and housing SO 1: Promote access to decent accommodation for disadvantaged social groups by providing rental accommodation, supporting DIY construction and building social housing stock


SO 2: Provide public facilities and road, water and rain and waste-water drainage infrastructure which is practical and resilient through good design/implementation and good maintenance


SO 3: Turn the towns of Burkina Faso into hubs of economic growth and sustainable development by promoting a green economy
Horizontal issues SO 1: Help to improve mastery of environmental problems and climate change by members of women's associations


SO 2: Help to improve the resilience of members of women's associations by implementing revenue-generating activities


SO 3: Develop adaptation technologies which take account of the conditions in women's associations on the basis of traditional knowledge


SO 4: Improve the contribution of NGOs to better governance in implementing the NAP/CC in Burkina Faso


SO 5: Ensure the sustainability of civil society initiatives in climate change adaptation


SO 6: Help to improve public involvement in the process of reflection, analysis and decision-making in connection with climate change adaptation by producing, disseminating and making efficient use of information originating from innovative CSO experiences.


SO 7:Improve the mobilisation and exploitation of water resources'


SO 8: Improve conservation and protection of water resources


SO 9: Improve knowledge about (surface and, more importantly, underground) water resources in the context of climate change


SO 10: Improve access to sanitation


The whole NAP for the country as a whole can be summarised as follows:


SHORT-, MEDIUM- AND LONG-TERM ADAPTATION OBJECTIVES ADAPTATION MEASURES SHORT-, MEDIUM- OR LONG-TERM
Protect accelerated growth pillars:



Agriculture • Cultivate early varieties or drought-resistant crops• Apply water and soil conservation methods (stone barriers, small dikes, filtering dikes, terraces, half moons, agroforestry, dune fixing etc.)


• Promote sustainable land management (SLM)


• Improve access to climate information

• Introduce agricultural insurance


Short-term


Short-term


Medium term


Medium-term


Long-term


Livestock farming • Fight bush fires in order to prevent destruction of dry-season grazing reserves


• Adopt best animal husbandry and pastoral practices (pastoral hydraulics, pastoral resource management, pasture mowing and conservation, pasture crops, silage, animal mobility and transhumance etc.)


• Ensure stakeholders take account of climate variability in development project and programme planning by improving their skills


• Preserve cattle breeding at serious risk from climate variability


• Ensure farmers adopt animal production methods adapted to a hot climate


Short-term


Short-term



Long-term


Long-term


Long-term


Forestry • Adopt best forestry and agroforestry practices (selective felling for firewood, natural assisted regeneration, controlled land clearance etc.)


• Introduce community and participative management of forestry and fauna resources


• Increase sustainable exploitation of non-timber forest products (NTFP)


Short-term

Long-term



Medium-term


Energy • Diversify energy sources (solar, wind, biogas)


• Introduce water planning and management plans in Sudanian zone where climate forecasts predict a slight increase in rainfall


• Promote energy-saving technologies in industry and construction• Promote the use of improved fireplaces to achieve a substantial reduction in consumption of wood and charcoal• Promote alternative energies such as butane and biogas


Long-term

Long-term

Long-term

Short-term

Medium-term

Infrastructure • Adhere strictly to dam and hydraulic structure, hydro - agricultural development and housing construction standards


• Update dam and hydraulic structure, hydro-agricultural development and housing construction standards


• Decontaminate and drain flood zones

• Preserve water resources and improve access to sanitation


• Pass and enforce laws and regulations, where applicable, on (i) construction of hydraulic, road and settlement i nfrastructures; (ii) space occupancy in urban and rural environments, especially of flood zones; (iii) mining activities (gold prospecting); (iv) industrial activities


• Relocate populations in submersible and floodable zones to appropriate zones


• Promote ecological housing and towns with low energy consumption (for air-conditioning and lighting)


• Promote and exploit local construction materials


Short-term



Medium-term


Medium-term


Medium-term



Long-term


Short-term


Long-term


Medium-term


Ensure sustainable food and nutrition security • Increase resilience of vulnerable communities and households to food and nutrition insecurity by improving their livelihood


• Achieve a structural and sustainable reduction in food and nutrition vulnerability of vulnerable communities and households


• Improve social protection of vulnerable communities and households in order to secure their livelihood


• Capitalise on and share innovations and best practices to support food and nutrition security


• Make increased use of non-timber forest products as food supplements


Medium-term

Long-term


Medium-term

Short-term

Medium-term

Preserve water resources and improve access to sanitation • Monitor water retention (dam dikes, water flow, valve functioning etc)


• Provide water storage: construct modern wells, high-flow boreholes, dams; develop ponds; divert water courses)


• Combat silting of water bodies


• Develop integrated water resources management (IWRM)


• Formulate water planning and management master plans


• Use appropriate technologies to reduce poor access for women to drinking water in the dry season


Short-term


Long-term


Long-term


Short-term


Short-term


Medium-term


Protect persons and goods fromextreme climate events andnatural disasters • Take account of resilience in development projects and programmes


• Formulate contingency plans at regional and local level and plans to support vulnerable populations


• Provide sustainable financing for disaster and humanitarian crisis prevention and management by formulating and implementing an appropriate financing strategy


• Improve women's skills by disseminating best climate change adaptation practices


• Use social safety nets for vulnerable populations


Short-term



Medium-term



Long-term


Short-term



Short-term


Protect and improve the functioning of natural ecosystems • Develop environmental education in both formal and non-formal education systems


• Implement reforestation projects and programmes using local species


• Disseminate anti-erosion techniques


• Rehabilitate and preserve wetlands


Medium-term


Long-term


Short-term


Long-term


Protect and improve public health Meningitis:


• Vaccine before first cases are reported


• Organise reactive campaigns which target the entire population in epidemic zones


• Increase meningitis monitoring using the geographical information system


• Step up public awareness-raising and information campaigns


Malaria:


• Provide proper treatment in all cases of simple malaria using ACT


• Provide intermittent preventive treatment of malaria using ITP for pregnant women and children and distribute long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLIN) in routine mass campaigns


• Decontaminate swampy sites and waste-water and excreta


• Combat malaria vectors (indoor spraying, behaviour change communication (BCC) at mass media and community relay level, treat breeding grounds)


Short-termMedium-termMedium-termMedium-term

Short-term

Medium-term


Medium-termLong-term

It is planned to implement the National Adaptation Plan based on a strategy comprising five (5) axes:

Strategic axis 1: Build long-term capacities of institutions involved in climate change adaptation
Strategic axis 2: Improve information systems
Strategic axis 3: Implement efficient and sustainable financing mechanisms
Strategic axis 4: Reduce the country's overall vulnerability to climate change
Strategic axis 5: Systematically integrate climate change adaptation into development policies and strategies

The consolidated costs of short-, medium- and long-term adaptation measures (1 to 15 years) by development sector or field are summarised below:

Development sector (including horizontal issues) Estimated cost in billion FCFA
Agriculture 1 313
Animal resources 375
Environment 375
Health 188
Energy 1 126
Infrastructure and housing 375
Water security 101,75
TOTAL 3853,75

The water sector includes horizontal elements. Additional investments may accrue from the other sectors, as listed in the table below.

Proposed actions Amounts in billion CFA
Baseline quality of water in water agency districts 2
Groundwater dam studies 1, 5
Use of technology to reduce surface evaporation from water bodies 2, 5
Agriculture:Develop water-saving booster irrigation systems (pools, impluvia) 1
Livestock farming:Improve fodder production by mobilising groundwater and surface water (groundwater dams, bourgou pastures) 1
Energy:Formulate water planning and management plans (WPMMP) in order to identify hydroelectric sites (3 water agencies) 0,5
Health:MalariaTreat and dry breeding groundsIncrease distribution of mosquito nets to populations living close to water bodies and reservoirs 0,50,5
Total 9,5

The NAP will be financed from various sources:

  • National budget
  • Traditional or emerging bilateral partners
  • Traditional or emerging multilateral partners
  • International foundations
  • Private sector
  • NGOs and NGO networks
  • etc.

The NAP will be coordinated and steered by the following government bodies:

  • National Council for the Environment and Sustainable Development > (CONEDD)
  • Permanent Secretariat of the National Council for the Environment > and Sustainable Development (PS/CONEDD).

If it is to play its full part and achieve its objectives, the NAP will need to be supplemented at a later date by a rigorous monitoring/assessment system and an operational communication strategy.The NAP monitoring and assessment mechanism will be exactly the same as that of the AGSDS and will comprise: (i) annual review of the NAP; (ii) sectoral reviews and (iii) regional reviews.To conclude: despite the naturally unfavourable conditions which exist in Burkina Faso, solutions exist that will enable it to move towards sustainable development. Political decision-makers will need to ensure that climate change adaptation is at the heart of development policies and strategies. Moreover, all development stakeholders (State, technical and financial partners, private sector, civil society organisations, international community) need to join forces to combat climate change. In that context, the NAP is a suitable reference framework which will enable all stakeholders to pool their efforts with a view to helping Burkina Faso reduce its structural vulnerability, increase its resilience and manage its development better.

INTRODUCTION[edit | edit source]

The government of Burkina Faso, with the support of the UNDP as a Global Environment Facility (GEF) implementing agency, started to prepare its National Adaptation Programme of Action on Climate Change (NAPA) in 2005. In November 2007, the NAPA was adopted at national level. Three adaptation projects were prepared and implemented between 2009 and 2014 under the leadership of the Ministry of Environment and the UNDP. At the present stage, Burkina Faso is expected to have an adaptation efficacy and cost evaluation document for the medium and long term for several sectors based on the following elements:

  • Analysis of local climate change (CC) scenarios up to 2025 and 2050 > where data are available
  • Analysis of vulnerability to CC of target sectors.

Furthermore, the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted decision 5/CP.17 on NAPs at its 17th session held in Durban (South Africa) from 28 November to 11 December 2011 in the aim of helping the least developed countries take better account of climate change in development policies and strategies.

The aforementioned decision 5/CP.17:

  • 'Invites least developed country Parties to use the guidelines and modalities contained in this decision, in accordance with their national circumstances, in preparing their national adaptation plans'.
  • 'Also invites the least developed country Parties to strive to implement institutional arrangements to facilitate their national adaptation plan process, building on existing institutions and consistent with their national circumstances'.

Burkina Faso decided to prepare an NAP in response to that decision. In order to do so, a multidisciplinary team of experts was set up at national level to prepare the NAP, taking account of gender and of civil society. Experts were appointed from the following fields and sectors: (i) agriculture; (ii) animal production; (iii) environment and natural resources; (iv) meteorology; (v) energy; (vi) health; (vii) infrastructure and housing; (viii) women's associations; (ix) civil society organisations. The experts are listed in the annex.

In order to take proper account of water security, the NAP took account of the written input received from the Global Water Partnership West Africa and the Burkina National Water Partnership.

In fact, these two partners offered their services to the national coordination agency for NAPA projects by providing a consultant who specialises in water and by cofinancing workshops with stakeholders.

FORMULATION OF NAP - NATIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES[edit | edit source]

Burkina Faso, like many other developing and certain developed countries, has ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). For the international community, ratification implied a pledge to be better prepared to contain the impact of climate change through national communications, policies and measures to mitigate the greenhouse effect, national climate change adaptation programmes and systematic monitoring of the problem.

Burkina Faso started the process to formulate its NAPA following ratification of the Kyoto Protocol in March 2005. The NAPA, the main objective of which was to identify priority actions based on the urgent and immediate need for adaptation among vulnerable populations (poor rural populations), was adopted in November 2007 and included the following key intervention sectors: agriculture, water resources, animal resources and forestry/biodiversity.

By ratifying the UNFCCC, Burkina Faso qualified for the Adaptation in Africa Programme (AAP) launched by the UNDP with funding from the Japanese government. In fact, following signature of the Convention in October 2008 between the UNDP and Japan on the implementation of the AAP, twenty (20) African countries, including Burkina Faso, were granted funding for their climate variability and change adaptation programmes. That was made possible by the Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) held in 2008.

In 2009, two years after validation of its NAPA, Burkina Faso was granted UNDP support in order to mobilise funding with a view to combined implementation of the following three (3) projects:

  • Capacity-building in order to adapt and reduce vulnerability to climate change in Burkina Faso (NAPA-BKF-UNDP/GEF)
  • Adaptation to climate change with a view to improving human security in Burkina Faso (NAPA-BKF-UNDP/DANIDA);
  • Capacity-building in order to take better account of climate change-related concerns during the preparation and implementation of development plans, programmes and projects (NAPA-BKF-UNDP/Japan).

These three projects operated in tandem in order to improve their implementation, as they are complementary and are respectively designed to increase awareness of the impact of climate change, test best practices or adaptation technology packages and underpin strategic planning that takes account of climate change.

  • An analysis of NAPAs in LDC illustrated that they had encountered > numerous difficulties in both the formulation and implementation > stages:

– delays during formulation; – insufficient account taken of climate change in development > policies and strategies; – insufficient financing during implementation.

Climate change adaptation is no longer a choice; it is instrumental to sustainable development. A process of inclusive and efficient involvement of all stakeholders must be put in place in order to combat the harmful effects of climate change.

It is currently recognised that the NAPA is in urgent need of review and that a national adaptation plan on climate change (NAP) urgently needs to be adopted. This advantage of this new vision is that it takes better account of climate change in development policies and strategies.

In order to gain a better understanding of the results expected of the NAP, it is important to understand the similarities and differences between an NAPA and an NAP. Both an NAPA and an NAP have the same goal, namely to reduce vulnerability to the impact of climate change by:

  • minimising, reducing or preventing risks and
  • improving the capacity to adapt to climate change.

However, an NAPA and an NAP have different objectives, which can be summarised as follows:

The Burkina Faso NAP was formulated with due regard for the following elements:
  • results of climate foresights;
  • assessment of the vulnerability of various sectors to climate change > led by national and international institutions;
  • acquis from pilot NAPA projects.

METHODOLOGY[edit | edit source]

The elements described in the sections below give an idea of the action taken during formulation of the Burkina Faso NAP. The national circumstances of the country were taken into account when planning that action. The methodology for formulating an NAP includes four (4) steps or 'elements'.

a) Laying the groundwork and addressing gaps The activities undertaken under this element, as set out in decision 5/CP.17 are designed to identify gaps and omissions in intervention frameworks and address them as necessary, to support the formulation of comprehensive adaptation plans, programmes and policies, through, inter alia:

  • identification and assessment of institutional arrangements, > programmes, policies and capacities for overall coordination and > leadership;
  • assessment of available information on climate change impacts, > vulnerability and adaptation, measures taken to address climate > change and gaps and needs, at the national and regional levels;
  • comprehensive iterative assessments of development needs and climate > vulnerabilities.

b) Preparatory elements

In developing NAPs, consideration is given to identifying specific needs, options and priorities on a country-driven basis, utilising the services of national and, where appropriate, regional institutions, and to the effective and continued promotion of participatory and gender-sensitive approaches coordinated with sustainable development objectives, policies, plans and programmes. Activities may include the following:

  • design and development of plans, programmes and policies by > considering decision 1/CP.16, paragraph 14(a), to address the gaps > and needs referred to in paragraph 1 above;
  • assessments of medium- and long-term adaptation needs, and, as > appropriate, development needs and climate vulnerabilities;
  • activities aimed at integrating climate change adaptation into > national and subnational development and sectoral planning;
  • participatory stakeholder consultations;
  • communication, awareness-raising and education.

c) Implementation strategies

Activities carried out as part of the implementation strategies take into consideration the following:

  • prioritising work according to development needs and climate change > vulnerability and risk;
  • strengthening institutional and regulatory frameworks to support > adaptation;
  • training and coordination at the sectoral and subnational levels;
  • public dissemination of information on the national adaptation plan > process, to be made available to the public and to the UNFCCC;
  • considering other relevant multilateral frameworks and international > programmes and initiatives, with a view to building on and > complementing existing adaptation planning.

d) Reporting, monitoring and review

These activities, including national adaptation plan documents, can be included in national strategies and plans, as appropriate. Under this element, Parties should undertake a regular review, at intervals that they determine:

  • to address inefficiencies, incorporating the results of new > assessments and emerging science and reflect lessons learned from > adaptation efforts;
  • to monitor and review the efforts undertaken, and provide > information in their national communications on the progress made > and the effectiveness of the national adaptation plan process.

An NAP is formulated in a participatory and inclusive approach, by holding a series of workshops to: (i) inform sectoral stakeholders about the NAP process; (ii) record their concerns for the purpose of formulating the NAP; (iii) obtain their approval of the draft NAP. The NAP has been devised in two volumes: the main volume contains the main elements of the NAP and the sectoral NAPs which provide detailed information on climate change adaptation in the various development sectors referred to above.

This NAP document, which was developed between November 2012 and January 2015 contains four main sections:

1) Preparatory phase, diagnostic analysis and conclusions from sectoral assessments 2) National adaptation plan 3) Implementation 4) Monitoring/assessment

PART ONE: PREPARATORY PHASE, DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS AND RESULTS OF SECTORAL ASSESSMENTS[edit | edit source]