‘Test Driving’ a Financing Instrument for Climate Adaptation: Analyzing Institutional Dilemmas using Simulation Gaming

Urban physical public infrastructure is a frontline defense mechanism to manage and mitigate climate-related impacts. Market instruments are often cited as possible means to spread risk and reduce financial burdens on the public sector. The authors argue that existing research tends to focus on the technical issues of instruments and neglects considering institutional dynamics that may enable or constrain local market-based financing mechanisms. In this article, three core dilemmas (values uncertainty, planning horizon, and indirect benefits) are used to analyze the responses of practitioners to a possible financing instrument. The findings indicate that the practitioner’s responses to tax increment financing were largely shaped by the adaptation dilemmas and not the characteristics of the instrument per se. By mapping the dilemmas onto whether they would recommend it, participants imposed a financial barrier on climate adaptation investments. The authors conclude that a key imperative in the design of policy instruments is to pay attention to the congruency of informal institutions at the ‘street level’ in order to be in-step with the current sociopolitical conditions. The findings also point to four key attributes that a local market-based instrument would need to be aligned and responsive to the Dutch planning and development context

Chapter 36 - Nigerian Coastal Environments

The coastal zone of Nigeria stretches approximately 853 km, and has four geomorphic units and a 210,900 km2 Exclusive Economic Zone. The Niger Delta geomorphic unit is longest (450 km), apparently the richest in biodiversity and mineral resources. The Niger Delta has Africa’s largest expanse of mangroves, which are major breeding and nursery grounds for many commercially important fin and shellfishes, and is rich in biodiversity in the Gulf of Guinea. However, the region’s mangroves are among the most degraded and less conserved. Artisanal and industrial operators exploit fish stocks unsustainably under ineffective regulatory regimes, but sustainable aquaculture is a viable option to close the wide fish demand-supply deficit. The rich wildlife of the coastal zone is heavily exploited, including endemics, despite piecemeal laws that seek to protect threatened and endangered species. There are an estimated 37.4 billion barrels of crude oil and 187 tcf of natural gas reserves in the Niger Delta, and crude oil currently accounts for 90% of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings. Oil production activities in the Niger Delta are a major source of land- and marine-based pollution of the coastal zone. Other threats include untreated effluent discharges, reclamation, deforestation, harmful fishing methods, invasive species, and unregulated sand mining. These activities weaken climate resilience, delimit socioeconomic opportunities, and increase coastal erosion vulnerability. The region’s tourism destination potential is also devalued. Meanwhile coastal cities such as Lagos, Warri, and Port Harcourt continue to experience rapid population growth, exacerbated by rural-push and urban-pull factors. Integrated coastal zone management is imperative, and other comanagement regimes, habitat restoration, legal and institutional frameworks, and capacity needs are all required.https://commons.wmu.se/lib_chapters/1021/thumbnail.jp

Changing times and strategies: Shell's contribution to sustainable community development in the Niger Delta, Nigeria

Sustainable development and poverty are pervasive problems in the Niger Delta, mainly due to lack of significant Nigerian government commitment to the development of the region. As a corporate citizen, Shell has contributed in various ways to local community development in the area. Based on a critical analysis of the changes in its strategies and policies, the paper contends that Shell's previous approaches to community development in the Niger Delta encouraged unsustainable development and a culture of dependency. It concludes that the recently launched sustainable community development strategy has the potential to succeed where others failed, if it is implemented within a tri-sector partnership framework involving Shell, the Nigerian government and civil society. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.