Evaluating Flood Adaptation Governance in the city of Calabar, Nigeria

There is increasing demand for cities in developing societies to embed climate adaptation into policies and practices. This has implications for the governance system. However, focus is often on traditional hierarchical forms of governing and governing by network neglecting other forms of governing. This raises fundamental questions concerning how governing arrangements support or, alternatively, constrain climate hazard management. Taking the city of Calabar in Nigeria, where flooding is a major hazard, as an empirical case study, this paper consists of three elements. First, the study assesses existing approaches to adapting to climate hazards. Second, it seeks to understand the governance systems adopted in the context of flood adaptation and their implication for practice. Third, the strategies necessary for an improved implementation of climate hazard adaptation at local governance level is examined. The study is based on a stakeholder workshop and document analysis. It shows that, despite calls for decentralised governance and prevalence of a hierarchical system, other forms of governing coexist alongside these systems of governing. Five key strategies which should form the basis of urban climate hazard adaptation in practice were identified by stakeholders, including: synergy of activities among stakeholders; enforcement devoid of politics and bureaucracy, capacity building and information/data availability; increased focus on international cooperation and funding; and consideration of connections between flooding and other urban processes. The study provides insight for designers and planners, for example, on the nature of relationships required for successful flood adaptation in cities of developing countries