“Six months of the year we experience drought, and the other six months we face floods," Bushra Ahmed Abdi, Senior Advisor to the Ambassador at the Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Somalia to UN-Habitat and UNEP in Nairobi, said during the roundtable of mass and civil society organizations titled “Community-led Action for Adequate Housing, Land and Basic Services in the Face of the Climate Crisis” held within the framework of WUF13, APA reports.
She stated that this repeats every year and occurs not only in Somalia, but also in Kenya and other regions: “Therefore, taking climate adaptation and resilience approaches into account is of great importance for these areas. Another important issue is recognizing the role of local initiatives and community organizations in the urban development process. In many cities, communities are already working themselves on the gradual improvement of living areas, mapping settlement zones and organizing basic services. These approaches are often more sustainable because they are based on existing social structures and local priorities rather than trying to replace them.”
She stated that community mapping, local censuses and phased ownership approaches can help cities carry out more effective planning and increase housing security for low-income communities: “These approaches are especially important in rapidly growing urban areas.
At the same time, there is great potential in linking climate adaptation finance with local housing infrastructure initiatives. Currently, financial systems are fragmented. There are separate private funds, separate housing funds and various public financing mechanisms. Linking these together and ensuring they work in an integrated manner could further strengthen the provision of public services.”
She believes that more investment should be made in local information systems and information created by communities:
“In many African cities, communities themselves possess the most accurate information about infrastructure deficiencies, vulnerability levels and living conditions.
Strengthening these local knowledge systems can improve planning, proper allocation of resources and long-term urban resilience.
I understand that these may sound somewhat like aspirations and may seem difficult to implement, especially within government structures. But progress must be made one step, one organization and one system at a time."
