Reviews: (3) Poverty and climate change: reducing the vulnerability of the poor

This consultation draft was intended as a contribution to the eighth conference of the parties to the United Nations framework convention on climate change.

It addresses the issue of the expected disproportionate impact of climate change on the worlds poor both through direct impacts and through the exacerbation of existing vulnerabilities.

The initial section of the paper looks in detail at this vulnerability of the poor to climate variability; the potential livlihoods, economic and health impacts and the implications for poverty reduction.

The paper then discusses the lessons for action which can be deduced from, amongst other things, attempts by countries to cope with existing climate variability. These include:

+ Improving governance to cope with climate change

+ Enhancing the resilience of the poor

+ Improving the quality of growth

+ Reforming international and industrial-country policies

Finally the paper examines the way forward concluding "The most effective way to address the increased vulnerabilities due to climate variability and change is by integrating climate concerns in the development process". This might be achieved by:

+ Mainstreaming climate concerns in the development process through interventions that both reorient policies and practices that already integrate current climate variability and filling policy gaps.

+ Assessments of the "expected vulnerability increase" in order to assess the appropriateness and effectiveness of interventions.

+ Strengthening human and institutional capacity in national and international development agencies and in appropriate civil-society organisations.

+ Capturing local knowledge, reviewing and assessing its applicability, and disseminating it to other communities and agencies.

+ The appropriate financing of these enabling activities