This dissertation investigates the challenges of climate governance and policy implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa. It explores why adaptation and mitigation efforts frequently underperform despite significant international investment, and how these ...
This dissertation investigates the challenges of climate governance and policy implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa. It explores why adaptation and mitigation efforts frequently underperform despite significant international investment, and how these initiatives can inadvertently exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and inequalities. The study argues that such outcomes stem from systemic governance deficits and implementation capacity gaps across macro-regional, meso-programmatic, and micro-household levels.
Chapter 2 assesses the climate-conflict nexus in the Lake Chad Basin using a mixed-methods design. The findings demonstrate that while climate shocks influence conflict dynamics, the magnitude and direction of these effects are primarily shaped by governance weaknesses and institutional fragility.
Chapter 3 analyzes REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) forest governance. Utilizing Global Comparative Study (GCS) REDD+ panel data across six countries and employing difference-in-differences (DID) and logit models, it identifies a significant "engagement-outcome gap." Specifically, while relatively advantaged groups lead participation, gains in forest protection and local livelihoods remain constrained by persistent implementation barriers.
Chapter 4 examines household transitions to clean energy using Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) Phase 8 data from ten Sub-Saharan African countries. Logit model results reveal that wealth, gender, and geography sustain disparities in access to improved cooking technologies, contributing to a persistent "adoption-use gap."
The findings indicate that the primary barrier to climate resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa is not a lack of policy frameworks, but rather a limited governance capacity to translate these frameworks into equitable, context-sensitive actions. Consequently, the dissertation concludes that strengthening implementation capacity is as vital as refining policy design itself.