The Critical Role of Nature-based Solutions for Enhancing Climate Resilience in Informal Areas: An Urban Supplement to the UNFCCC Technical Guidelines on National Adaptation Plans

This guidance note is designed as an urban supplementary material to the UNFCCC Technical Guidelines for the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process. It seeks to strengthen the links between urban adaptation, informal areas, and nature-based solutions (NBS) within the different elements of the NAP processes and adaptation planning more broadly. The publication reviews good practice from towns, cities and countries that have taken urban actions to adapt to climate change and offers practical guidance on scaling this work to the national level through the NAP. 

 The target audience of this supplementary guide are national and sub-national decision-makers and officials concerned about climate change issues, particularly those involved in the consultation process that accompanies the formulation of NAPs or in the implementation of NAP priorities in urban areas. The tool aims to increase the understanding of national governments on the importance of local planning for the national agenda and foster a multilevel approach by involving sub-national governments when defining national priorities.  

 The guidance note draws on the vast experience of UN-Habitat’s Flagship Programme Resilient Settlements for the Urban Poor (RISE UP) and the Participatory Slum Upgrading Programme (PSUP) and presents a flexible approach that can be adapted to the country’s context, capacities and resources available. It has four parts:  

•  Part 1 introduces the supplementary guide.  

• Part 2 describes the context of informal settlements and the informal economy.  

• Part 3 examines the critical role of NBS for resilience building in informal areas.  

• Part 4 provides a step-by-step guide to integrate NBS and informal areas in NAPs.  

 Using this guide, relevant institutions who are formulating NAPs or overseeing their implementation, should be able to identify climate change priorities specific to urban vulnerabilities, especially in informal areas and incorporate them at different stages of the NAP process.