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Vanuatu is among the most vulnerable countries on earth to the increasing impacts of climate change, including climate-related natural disasters and the effects of slow-onset events such as sea-level rise and ocean acidification.
As the effects of global warming manifest and the hazards of climate change arise at accelerating rates, there is a need to shift the paradigm towards the standardised and mainstreamed use of science-based climate information, at multiple timescales, to support resilient development pathways.
The proposed project will support this paradigm shift through the strengthening and application of Climate Information Services (CIS) in five targeted development sectors: tourism; agriculture; infrastructure; water and fisheries.
More specifically, the project will build the technical capacity in Vanuatu to harness and manage climate data; develop and deliver practical CIS tools and resources; support enhanced coordination and dissemination of tailored information; enhance CIS information and technology infrastructure; and support the application of relevant CIS through real-time development processes, for more resilient outcomes.
The project has a focus on addressing information gaps and priority needs of target beneficiaries at national, provincial and local community levels across the five priority sectors.
The project will deliver enhanced:
capacity and capability of national development agents, to understand, access and apply CIS
CIS communications, knowledge products, tools, and resources for practical application to development processes.
reliability, functionality, utility and timeliness of underlying CIS delivery systems and data collection infrastructure.
scientific data, information and knowledge of past, present and future climate to facilitate innovated and resilient development.
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In July 2021, UNOSAT and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) signed a new cooperation framework to sustain and expand their longstanding efforts to strengthen capacities in the use of geospatial information technologies for improved resilience in the Asia-Pacific and Africa.This 3 year-long project builds on previous experiences and aims to further enhance capacities by leveraging technological advances and innovation and providing integrated geospatial solutions for improved decision making in the fields of Disaster Risk Reduction, Climate Resilience, Environmental Preservation & Food Security in the eight target countries: Vanuatu, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Lao PDR, Nigeria, and Uganda.An innovative user-centred capacity development approach will be applied for the implementation of this project, and it is comprised of:• Technical Training: Through the implementation of this project in each target country, UNOSAT will offer a total of three technical trainings custom-tailored to the country’s needs, with focus on climate finance, geospatial information technology, and disaster risk management. The courses will be delivered to both executive managers and technical staff, through three main approaches: face-to-face, blended learning, and e-learning solutions.• Knowledge Platform & Community of Practice: The project team will also implement a central Knowledge Platform for the project, this will serve as an integrated learning environment for all distance-learning solutions and the main meeting point of UNOSAT’s community of practice, all aiming at sustaining the project outcomes and increasing its impact. The knowledge platform will also facilitate cross country knowledge and expertise sharing for tackling common challenges.
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Organizational Expertise Justification:
Members of the consortium have been working in Vanuatu for over 30 years. We have extensive experience working together and with the government of Vanuatu to help address the immediate and long-term needs of Vanuatu communities across the country. We also have strong experience in helping communities recover from the impacts of disaster events.
Members of this consortium were the key partners in a three year, DFAT-supported AU$2 million community-based adaptation project – Yumi stap redi long klaemet jenis – which pioneered a comprehensive approach to helping communities and local governments prepare for, and manage the immediate impacts of climate variability and extremes, while building the capacity of women, men, girls and boys to develop climate-resilient development pathways. CARE and Save the Children built on this foundation to implement a further 16-month, USAID-supported US$0.5 million community-based adaptation project, while Oxfam implemented a further three-year, Margaret A. Cargill-supported US$847,000 community-based resilience program which continued to build on existing networks and aimed to increase collaboration, knowledge sharing and support between communities, NGOs, relevant government departments and development partners around increasing community and government resilience. Our agencies have also worked in collaboration with communities from across the six provinces of Vanuatu, national civil society organisations and government to develop and implement disaster risk reduction projects, such as the DiPECHO funded “Be Better Prepared (Yumi Redi)” series of projects that focused on community-based disaster risk reduction activities and encouraged communities to form Disaster Management Committees and to support sustainable development action across a range of key sectors, including: livelihoods; water, sanitation and hygiene; education; and gender equality.
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This Environment and Social Impact Assessment and Management Plan have been prepared for The Pacific Community (SPC), to inform the project design of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Funding Proposal titled: Enhancing Adaptation and Community Resilience by Improving Water Security in Vanuatu. This project will deliver adaptation action for Vanuatu’s water infrastructure and community users and will ensure gender mainstreaming in the paradigmatic shift being proposed
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The Government of Vanuatu, with the guidance of the Recovery Operations Centre (ROC) conducted a Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) with support from the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Pacific Community (SPC). The PDNA, which took place during the months of April and May 2023, was implemented in collaboration with ADB, FAO, UNFPA, UNWOMEN, UNICEF, WHO, ILO, the World Bank.
The purpose of the PDNA was to identify the damage and loss caused by TC Judy and Kevin across all sectors, to assess the macro-economic and human impact of these disasters, to estimate the recovery needs in all sectors, and to inform Vanuatu’s short-, medium- and long-term recovery and reconstruction process through a well-planned Recovery Plan aligned to the country’s National Sustainable Development Plan 2016-2030. This report presents the final results of the PDNA.
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Experience shows that communities with strong traditional knowledge on weather and climate are better able to adapt to extreme climate and weather events.
In some parts of Vanuatu, though, these skills are starting to disappear. Reasons for this include language loss, knowledge holders being unable to pass information on to the next generation, and the impact of climate change on the traditional indicators when animal and plants change behaviours and habitats in response to the warming climate.
Maintaining traditional climate knowledge is critical for community climate resilience, so the Vanuatu Klaemet Infomesen blong Redy, Adapt mo Protekt (VanKIRAP) Project is gathering existing traditional knowledge used in forecasting to produce integrated forecasts for Vanuatu that combine traditional knowledge with scientific model-based data.
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The nation has made a significant step forward today with the commissioning of Vanuatu's first ocean climate monitoring and observation buoy network, deployed by the VanKIRAP project.
The Vanuatu Ocean Monitoring Network is a chain of six ocean climate monitoring buoys deployed across the Vanuatu archipelago to monitor how climate change is affecting the ocean around the country, and to provide early warning to communities and key agencies of impending climate-related events.
The buoys are deployed at Port Vila, Efate; Million Dollar Point, Santo; Lonnoc Beach, Santo; Port Resolution, Tanna; Inyeug Island, Aneityum and Tomman Island, Malekula. The buoys measure sea surface temperature, wave direction, wave height, wave period and spread as well as wind speed at each location.
The data that they gather allows VMGD and Dept of Fisheries to issue early warnings to communities for coastal inundation and erosion. The buoys can also provide near real-time data about the impacts of climate-related events like cyclones and marine heatwaves.
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The project considers the current Vanuatu’s Off-Grid RE and EE Promotion Program as the main baseline effort towards achieving the country’s NERM targets. This program includes the installation of RE-based (mainly hydro, and solar) power generation and distribution systems, as well as some Energy Efficiency interventions. This project aims to fill in critical gaps in Vanuatu’s baseline program.
Policy and planning: The project will identify important policy and planning gaps and institutionalize existing policies and plans in place (NERM-IP Plan and NERM) in the baseline program that it will fill, such as guidelines, standards, and incentive policies.
Institutional: The project will focus and represent relatively innovative incremental aspects. System management will be a critical feature in the sustainability of rural RE systems and their replication and thus an instrumental contribution towards meeting NERM targets.
Capacity development: While Vanuatu has substantial baseline program efforts to install RE systems in off-grid areas, training is very limited and generally consists of one-time training upon installation of systems. For larger-scale systems, capturing wind energy, equipment sourcing, and installation capacity is absent.
Green transport: The project will aim to set example of green transport mechanism by introducing electric vehicles
Financing for energy efficiency: The focus will be given to educating the commercial private sector to set up a loan or equity financing mechanism for Energy Efficiency Equipment and productive uses in rural areas.
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The Project Profile for - "Barrier Removal for Achieving the National Road Map Targets for Vanuatu Phase II (BRANTV II)"
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The Van-KIRAP E-Newsletter for March 2023
Headlines included in the E-newsletter are listed below:
Severe Tropical cyclone Judy & Kevin
VanKIrap team Member assists in response to twin cyclone disaster
Workshop seekd novel ways to augment climate information using traditional knowledge
community Climate centre gives better access to Climate information for Tanna
Schools on Tanna join Climate monitoring network thanks to VanKIRAP
Climate resilience of Vanuatu's agriculture sector supported by new online tool
New digital dataset improves accuracy and quality of Vanuatu's climate data
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Van - KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Calendars for Shefa Province
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Van-KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Calendars - Tafea Province
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Van-KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Seasonal Calendar for Penama Province
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The Van- KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Calendars for Sanma Province
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The Van- KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Calendars for Torba Province
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Van-KIRAP Traditional Knowledge Calendars for the Province of Malampa,
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The VanKIRAP Traditional Knowledge Strategy and Implementation Plan
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Vanuatu National Community-based Climate Change Adaptation Project (provisional) Project Profile Form
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Vanuatu is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change and disaster risks, routinely being at or near the top of global risk indexes. This high ranking is primarily due to the country’s extreme exposure to natural hazards as well as its limited adaptive capacity. Temperatures in Vanuatu have already increased by approximately 1˚C and are expected to increase further by at least 1˚C by 2030, with increases of up to 3.2˚C by 2090. This increase in temperature is coupled with an increase in sea level of approximately 6mm annually since 1993. This increase is expected to continue and accelerate into the future, with cumulative increases of up to 17cm by 2030 and 63cm by 2090. The frequency and intensity of extreme weather events is also predicted to increase, and the changing profile of cyclones, storm surges, landslides, flooding, and droughts will result in severe impacts on lives, livelihoods and infrastructure across Vanuatu, affecting both human communities and natural ecosystems.
In recent years, the Government of Vanuatu (GoV) has taken significant steps to improve resilience to natural disasters and adaptive capacity to climate change adaptation. These steps include:
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The Vanuatu National Climate Change Disaster Risk Reduction Policy 2022 - 2030 second edtion
Vanuatu is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change and disaster risks. The island nation experiences cyclones, storm surges, landslides, flooding and droughts, which may become more intense as a result of climate change. Vanuatu is also highly exposed to geophysical threats such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis, as well as human, animal and plant diseases, and human-caused disasters.
The vision of this Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction Policy is for Vanuatu to be a nation whose communities, environment and economy are resilient to the impacts of climate change and disaster risks. Risks cannot be completely eliminated; however, this policy provides a framework through which risks can be identified, assessed, reduced and managed.
At the global, regional and national levels, disaster risk reduction and climate change agencies, activities and funding have been previously managed separately. A recent shift in philosophy now views the integration of climate change and disaster risk reduction initiatives as the best way to make use of resources and avoid duplication of effort. Vanuatu started this process with the establishment of the National Advisory Board on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction in 20121 . The government undertook a risk governance assessment to analyse Vanuatu’s climate change and disaster risk governance capacity and needs at both national and local levels.2 The policy incorporates recommendations from that assessment and draws on local, provincial and national consultations.
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The UNOSAT- NORAD Project Presentation,being presented to the NAB Members on the 3rd NAB Meeting on 19th of July 2022, for the NAB Board Members to endorsed the Project.
Presenter: Ian Huri, CommonSensing, UNOSAT
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The Project Profile Form for the Project - Strengthening capacities in the use of geospatial information for improved resilience in Asia-Pacific and Africa
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Vanuatu submits this updated and enhanced nationally determined contribution (NDC), in which our politicalleaders, technical experts and civil society have considered how our nation can move to a global net-zerogreenhouse gas (GHG) emissions society (Article 4.1) whilst being resilient to the unavoidable impacts ofclimate change (Article 7.1), minimising, averting and addressing loss and damage (Article 8) in the contextof the long-term temperature goal (Article 2), while determining our financial needs (Article 9) that shall beprovided by developed country Parties in continuation of their existing obligations under the UNFCCC.Vanuatu is already a carbon-negative country. With forests covering 70% of its islands, and its maritimejurisdiction comprising 98% of the nation, the big ocean state of Vanuatu is already a carbon sink -absorbing more carbon dioxide than it produces - thus freely providing a critical environmental serviceto carbon emitting countries around the world. Moving beyond our current Net Zero status, this NDCrecommits Vanuatu to rapidly phasing out fossil fuels, deeply decarbonising and transitioning completelyto a circular economy.Pursuant to Article 4 of the Paris Agreement, and to demonstrate that Vanuatu is an action-focused leaderin its calls for all Parties to make ambitious commitments to limit the global average temperature increase to1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, Vanuatu’s NDC reflects the highest ambitions on adaptation, mitigation,and loss and damage. As per Decision 4/CMA.1, Vanuatu’s information provides clarity, transparency andunderstanding.This updated and enhanced NDC contains 20 Mitigation commitments, 116 Adaptation commitments, 12Loss & Damage commitments and is based on the ambitions, policies and workplans of Vanuatu's frontlinesector agencies.
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There is a significant body of research being conducted examining the role of Kastom. As this project is focusing on legal frameworks it will build on existing projects. Key components involve a literature review and conducting a series of interviews. This PhD will be by publication. This will mean that a series of academic journal articles will be written through the projects duration.
This project will add value to understanding in terms of how Customary ( Kastom) Law may be incorporated in to international environmental law pertaining to Global Climate Change Adaptation. As normative frameworks are failing to address this global threat, perhaps Kastom may hold some of the answers as to how people may be reconnected to their life supporting environments.
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