Rapid Climate Risk Assessments
Conducting a Rapid Climate Risk Assessment (RCRA) to understand a city’s present and future climate risks is crucial for identifying, prioritizing, and implementing urban planning strategies that avoid repeating mistakes made by other cities globally. An RCRA collects essential data on climate hazards, infrastructure vulnerabilities, previous and ongoing initiatives, and relevant policies and institutions. It also pinpoints specific neighborhoods and districts that have recently faced floods and other severe climate-related events.
An RCRA can be the critical first step in a city’s long-term climate adaptation journey. Below, we share insights from cities that have embarked on the RCRA journey with the support of the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP). These knowledge products offer insights for resilient city planning practices in developing country contexts.
Contact Info
For more information or to get involved, please contact:
Joep Verhagen
Global Lead, Water & Urban
joep.verhagen@gca.org
Djibouti City, Djibouti
The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA), in partnership with the government and other stakeholders, conducted an RCRA, revealing that extreme weather conditions such as high temperatures, drought, and floods are severely impacting lives and livelihoods in Djibouti City. These negative impacts of climate change are bound to get worse if the city does not adapt. Simple and affordable climate change risk management and adaptation measures that the city can implement were identified during the assessment.
Kisumu City, Kenya
Climate change hazards, including droughts and floods, present formidable challenges for Kisumu City residents, resulting in the loss of lives and livelihoods. The situation, according to the results of an RCRA undertaken by GCA, is getting worse. However, the RCRA identified climate adaptation actions for the city that are well within reach, simple, and affordable.
Marrakech, Morocco
Food and water supply challenges, rising cases of respiratory diseases, and loss of livelihoods due to drought, extreme temperatures, and flooding are some of the impacts of climate change that Marrakech City residents are experiencing. While these impacts are getting worse, according to the results of an RCRA undertaken by GCA, there are risk management and adaptation actions that can make Marrakech more resilient and boost its adaptation to climate change.
Mukuru, Nairobi, Kenya
Flooding and extreme temperatures were identified as the major climate change hazards in the Mukuru informal settlement in an RCRA undertaken by GCA together with the government and other partners. Additionally, residents are affected by air pollution, landslides, extreme temperatures, and drought. The climate risk management and adaptation measures identified in the exercise are simple and within reach.