ghana climate change vulnerability and adaptation assessment

Information and analysis needs for forestry-related items are also apparent. Land cover/land use inventoriesand forest inventories are needed to set baselines for deforestation, carbon pools under REDD+, and tomeet MRV requirements. Investigation is needed in areas where carbon sequestration can complement FtFefforts, e.g., increasing mangroves, rangeland management, agro-forestry, farmer-managed naturalregeneration (FMNR), and riparian forest management (FtF). Optimized shade-grown cocoa managementschemes are needed that provide high levels of return to farmers, reduce deforestation and degradation andalso offer greater biodiversity benefits than sun-grown cocoa (FtF).Many in Ghana have a lack of awareness of and skills to use climate change, agricultural, natural resourcemanagement, or other information that would reduce their vulnerability. Partnerships with localimplementers would build the climate change awareness of end users (e.g., farmers, fishermen, media,government) and enhance their ability to use information (FtF, Edu). Workshops should be organized onvarious topics (e.g., climate change, adaptation, carbon sequestration) for agriculture sector partners and FtFimplementers. Cocoa producers lack the skills and knowledge to implement the whole technology package forsun-grown cocoa; cocoa productivity could be increased by intensification and access to inputs (FtF). Topdownapproaches to fire management are unsuccessful in part because of a lack of awareness of traditionalmethods. GoG agencies and personnel should be educated on modern integrated fire managementapproaches and traditional approaches and the two integrated on the ground. Not all adaptation measurescurrently used are sustainable and many are erosive to future economic health and well-being at thehousehold, community, and regional levels. Adaptations should be considered carefully so that unsustainableapproaches are avoided (e.g., marine fuel pre-mix program). Short-term temporary and long-term copingmechanisms should be distinguished and the difference communicated to the public (FtF, Edu). Livestockproduction in the north offers a potential to diversify livelihoods in the north and hence decreasevulnerability to climate change. This potentiality should be communicated and promoted; and support shouldbe given to schemes that help farmers adopt livestock keeping (FtF). Most crop yields in Ghana are belowpotential, requiring intensification to meet MIC goals. Agricultural productivity could be increased byimproving distribution channels and access to technology and inputs (e.g., fertilizer) and by providing farmersaccess to operating capital and crop insurance to mitigate effects of climate variability. (FtF). Farmers lackinformation on consumer quality expectations and fail to meet market demand. Awareness of consumerexpectations should be raised and quality assurance programs instituted for improved marketability (FtF).NEW INTERVENTIONS FOR USAID PROGRAMMINGTo mainstream climate change into USAID programming in Ghana, and indeed for the GoG and otherdonor partners to integrate climate change into their development efforts, the availability of meteorologicaldata and interpretive information must be increased. To effectively utilize available climate information, thecapacity within Ghana to use the information must also be enhanced. This need presents an opportunity forUSAID Ghana to develop programs or partner with others to build capacity. The two sides of the issue areincreasing available data and enhancing capacity to use the data and climate projections. Increasing dataavailability can be achieved by partnering with regional institutions and non-governmental partners toincrease meteorological monitoring capacity by increasing the number of weather stations, especially in ruralareas in the northern regions where the current monitoring network is sparse. Other initiatives could focus onbuilding relationships among regional institutions such as FAMNET, AGRHYMET, and others to deliverdata interpretation. Climate modeling at the scale of the Global Climate Models is already available over theinternet, but the expertise necessary to interpret these data, state their uncertainties, and effectively use themto downscale to regional climate models is generally lacking in Ghana and elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa,except possibly in South Africa. Thus, another opportunity for USAID is to develop interpretation andcommunication capacity within Ghana, either at a university, within the GoG, or in a jointly funded andmaintained center.Other options are more sectoral in nature. One need seems to be an integrated and realistic energy strategyfor Ghana that depends on internal resources. There are few opportunities to expand hydropower; in fact, thecurrent capacity will likely diminish over time as precipitation within the Volta basin declines, andGHANA CLIMATE CHANGE VULNERABILITY AND ADAPTATION ASSESSMENT 175