Resilience in the face of ecological challenges

Strategies for integrating environmental considerations into social policy planning in Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID12306096
AuthorsWaidi Gbenro Adebayo (0000-0002-3235-8790, Department of Philosophy, Politics and Economics Witten/Herdecke University Witten Germany, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume33
Issue1
Pages203-220
Publication date2024-07-08
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSustainable Development (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0968-0802 • E-ISSN: 1099-1719
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/sd.3113
OpenAlexW4400424378
LanguageEN
Citations received15
References cited68

Africa faces severe ecological crises, such as climate change, resource depletion, and biodiversity loss, undermining sustainable development efforts and exacerbating poverty and hunger. Integrating environmental concerns into social policy planning could help build community resilience and support sustainable development. This study employed policy analysis and stakeholder engagement to identify key environmental issues, policy gaps, and strategies for integrating environmental considerations into social policies across various sectors in Africa. The study found a significant lack of integration of environmental concerns into social policy across areas like disaster management, agriculture, urban planning, healthcare access, and infrastructure development policies. As a percentage of respondents, the top environmental issues were flooding (32%), drought/desertification (13%), and food security/agriculture (11%), with farmers (35.4%) and women (21.7%) being the most vulnerable to climate change. Most community stakeholders (87.5%) emphasized the importance of integrating environmental considerations into social policy, with 56.25% rating it a high priority. They underscored the need for more locally driven planning, ecological monitoring, land restoration, diversified livelihoods, and climate change adaptation support through social policies to enhance environmental sustainability. This study's novelty lies in its comprehensive approach to understanding and addressing the complex interplay between environmental challenges and social policy planning in Africa. The findings emphasize the urgent need for policymakers to develop cross‐sectoral national and local policies that use participatory processes to prioritize environmental sustainability, adaptation, community empowerment, and alignment with sustainable development goals while being responsive to continuing environmental uncertainty and change

Agriculture · Business · Climate change · Economics · Ecosystem services · Environmental change · Environmental planning · Environmental resource management · Food security · Geography · Livelihood · Political science · Psychological resilience · Social sustainability · Sustainability · Sustainable development · Climate change impacts on agriculture · Energy and Environment Impacts · Sustainability and Climate Change Governance · Ecology