Haiti - Strengthening Adaptive Capacity of Coastal Communities

In Haiti, the UNDP supported project Building adaptive capacity to address climate change threats for sustainable development strategies in coastal communities aims to reduce the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems and farmers' and fishermen's livelihoods to climate change by building sustainable human and environmental adaptation capacity. Funded by the Least Developed Country Fund (LDCF) and building on Haiti’s National Adaptation Plan of Action (NAPA), the project demonstrates that ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation can play a key role in reducing human and natural vulnerability to the multiple threats of climate change. Key activities of the project include: capacity building to maintain economic and ecological safety nets as coping mechanisms during climate change events; adaptation measures implemented in the agriculture and water management sectors in coastal areas to reduce vulnerability and maintain ecosystem services; and knowledge sharing across different development sectors.

The project is the first of its kind in Haiti and is contributing towards the overall achievement of Haiti‘s development goals, including food and water security, at the country level by maintaining ecosystems resilience. Even though the project suffered substantial implementation delays due to the dramatic earthquake in January 2010 and subsequent emergency phase, to date, the project has succeeded in actively engaging different actors at the central and local governments to ensure sustainable development by addressing climate change threats. The project has provided regular institutional capacity-building support to the Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Finance to integrate climate change adaptation measures in national policies and local development plans. Country-wide vulnerability and adaptation assessments for the water and agriculture sectors have been developed, and field studies were undertaken to determine the best adaptation measures to increase ecosystem resilience for water and food sectors in the southern Haiti, the most vulnerable region in the country.