Development of The UAE National Adaptation Plan

The Global Green Growth Institute is seeking a candidate for the development of the UAE National Adaptation Plan in Dubai. This role focuses on addressing climate change impacts in the UAE, which include heat, water stress, and other hazards. The position involves formulating a national-level plan to guide adaptation measures across various sectors, ensuring stakeholder participation and evidence-based decision-making to enhance resilience against climate challenges.
INTRODUCTION TO GGGI:
The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization dedicated to supporting and promoting strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth in developing countries and emerging economies. To learn more please visit about GGGI web page.
• PROJECT BACKGROUND*:
The climate-associated hazards pose a threat to the UAE and include heat, water stress, heavy rainfall, as well as dust and sandstorms. If left unchecked, climate change could impact the coastal zones, public health, labor productivity, food security, tourism, and infrastructure. These severe consequences can only be prevented by a combination of systematic, long-term mitigation and adaptation efforts. The UAE is in a water-scarce hyper-arid environment; therefore, climate adaptation is of critical importance. Climate change adaptation is an opportunity to address bottlenecks in governance coordination in support of human welfare because adaptation encapsulates a broad temporality of measures that address very short-term (disaster, anticipatory action related) to very long-term issues such as how the structure of the economy will interact with future climate challenges.

The UAE has already demonstrated its commitment to addressing climate change that affects all spheres of society and the environment. The challenge of rapid global heating is matched by the opportunity to pursue a sustainable growth pathway that preserves the environment and improves the quality of life, as envisioned in the UAE Vision 2021. Through this document the UAE positions adaptation as a necessity and not an option. However, while there are ongoing adaptation measures and initiatives in the UAE, there is a significant need for a national-level plan to formulate and guide adaptation measures across different sectors and in particular at different sub-national/emirate levels. Assessments of risk, exposure, and vulnerability in different sectors have been initiated but require more attention to the frame, implement, monitor, and evaluate adaptation strategies.

A National Adaptation Plan (NAP) is a powerful vehicle to facilitate adaptation planning. It seeks to identify medium
- and long-term adaptation needs, informed by the latest climate data and information. These assessments inform adaptation planning measures and implementation underpinned by the enhancement of climate science and its extrapolation into accessible tools and measures that benefit all economic and social actors. This process aims to balance scientific and evidence-based decision-making with broad participation from relevant stakeholders and beneficiaries. Furthermore, a NAP, as a more “operational” document that NDCs can help to consolidate across several climate governance tools as the document aims to tackle a range of threats that impact society.

Despite the existence of the national climate change plan and national adaptation action program, the UAE needs a NAP to identify, prioritize, mainstream, implement and monitor adaptation strategies. The existing in-country risk assessment studies such as the UAE Climate Risk Assessment and Adaptation Measures in Key Sectors under the National Climate Change Adaptation Program will form the basis of risk measures and will be extended to other priority sectors identified by stakeholders. These assessments have supported the identification and prioritization of initial adaptation options in the most critical sectors (Health, Energy, Infrastructure, Environment, and Insurance). Thus, if a NAP plan and process are correctly undertaken, they can also support current broader societal goals as well as future-proof decisions made about economy, and culture and even nurture a new relationship with nature and the environment.

However, the impacts of climate change are not gender-neutral. Women, children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and marginalized communities are particularly vulnerable to climate-related risks. The NAP process is a key mechanism for defining adaptation priorities, channeling resources, and implementing adaptation actions. It therefore presents a key opportunity to address the gender dimensions of climate change if it is undertaken in a gender-responsive manner. Thus, integrating gender and social safeguards into the NAP ensures that the needs and capacities of these groups are recognized and addressed, promoting resilience across all segments of society.

In this context, GGGI is supporting the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), the Government of the UAE in developing the NAP for the UAE which is Gender-Responsive. The development of the UAE NAP aims to enhance the resilience of communities, economies, and ecosystems to climate-related hazards and long-term changes. As part of this strategic initiative, the inclusion of gender and social safeguards is essential to ensure that adaptation measures are equitable, inclusive, and effective.
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