ActionAid Uganda Urges Increased Investment in Climate Adaptation

ActionAid International Uganda has called for increased investment in climate change adaptation and resilience as rural communities in Northern Uganda continue to grapple with prolonged dry spells, declining agricultural productivity and environmental degradation. The call was made during a community engagement at Pabali Regional CLC in Anaka Payira Sub-county, Nwoya District, as part of a week-long campaign aimed at promoting climate justice and strengthening community-led responses to the effects of climate change. The campaign is being held as part of the Global Week of Climate Action, observed every September under the theme, "Our Communities. Our Climate. Our Future: Young People Leading Climate Justice." The campaign seeks to bridge information gaps at community level while providing local people with a platform to discuss climate change, adaptation, environmental conservation and climate justice. Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn Robert Asiimwe, a Programme Officer at ActionAid International Uganda in Northern Uganda, said communities on the frontline of climate change were bearing some of the greatest impacts despite contributing relatively little to the crisis. "Climate change impacts affect people at the frontline in rural communities like where we are here in Anaka. This community depends on land, natural resources and rain, but we see things are changing, which means their livelihoods are impacted," Asiimwe said. He said changing rainfall patterns were making it increasingly difficult for farmers to determine when to plant, with implications for household food security. "Currently, we cannot tell whether we are in a rainy season or a dry season. What does it mean for a person in rural Uganda? It means it will affect their planting seasons, which means that they will not have food in their homes," he said. Asiimwe called on the government to increase resources for climate adaptation and invest in building the resilience of communities most affected by climate change. "Government needs to invest adequate resources in building the resilience of communities to adapt to the crises caused by climate change," he said. He also urged greater investment in locally led solutions, including agroecology, agroforestry and research that combines indigenous knowledge with scientific approaches. "We have tested locally led interventions in climate change, like agroecology. Why can't we invest in agroecology? Why can't we invest in agroforestry? Why can't we invest in research that brings out traditional knowledge and test it against scientific knowledge to ensure that solutions are customised to the local context?" he said. Asiimwe said ActionAid's campaign was also advocating for reforms to the global financial system, including debt cancellation for developing countries, arguing that resources that could otherwise be directed towards climate adaptation were being used to service debt. "The campaign thus far comes in saying, can we cancel that debt for the Global South countries, such that the little resources they have are channelled to climate change?" he said. He further called for grant-based climate financing that would enable affected communities to access resources without excessive restrictions. "We need to have funds, grant-based funding that is just. When we talk of climate change, we talk of climate justice. It is understanding that the people who are affected most, the people at the frontline, have their voices heard. They are part of decision-making, and they are also part of the redistribution of resources, which are supposed to be just," he said. Asiimwe said climate change should no longer be treated as an abstract subject discussed mainly at international conferences such as the Conference of the Parties (COP), arguing that its effects were already visible in communities. "When you come on the ground, the impacts are not abstract. You will see crops drying in the gardens. You will see animal