When Resilience Means Leaving your Home and Making a New One
Along the beach in Mondouku, Côte d'Ivoire, a group of fishermen have just returned with their catch. Many of them come from neighboring Ghana because they are more fish there.
Read More
We Need a Gender-Sensitive Approach to Tackle Plastic Pollution by Arzucan Askin
Women play a central yet largely invisible role in the use and recycling of plastic.
Read More
Call for Innovation Request for Clarification/Q&A Deadline
If you are interested in submitting an Expression of Interest to the WACA Call for Innovation but have questions, the Q&A window is open until June 22, 2020 (11:59pm US Eastern Standard Time).
Learn More
Preserving Mangroves to Enhance Coastal Resilience
Happy Earth Day! Did you know that each year, mangroves store the equivalent of carbon emissions from 26 million cars?
Read MoreNews & Events
By 2100, West Africa is expected to have sea level rise of up to 1.06 m.
Along the beach in Mondouku, a group of fishermen have just returned with their catch.
Women play a central yet largely invisible role in the use and recycling of plastic.
The Q&A window is now open until June 22, 2020 (11:59pm US Eastern Standard Time).
Did you know that each year, mangroves store the equivalent of carbon emissions from 26 million cars?
Key Facts & Figures
-
56%
Coastline in Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo subject to an average erosion of 1.8 m per year
-
US$1.4 billion
Cost of air, water and waste pollution cost in 2017 to Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo
-
13,000 deaths
Occur in Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo primarily due to floods, air and water in 2017
-
$3.8 billion
The cost of erosion, flooding and pollution cost to Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal and Togo
-
56% GDP
Generated by West Africa Coastal Areas
COASTAL CHALLENGES IN WEST AFRICA
Coastal erosion and flooding in West Africa severely threaten people’s communities, livelihoods, safety and investments. About 56% of West Africa’s GDP is generated in coastal provinces, where one-third of the population resides. Stronger storms and rising seas are wiping out homes, roads and buildings that have served as landmarks for generations. Some beaches are deeply mined for sand, protective mangroves are deforested, and people are increasingly vulnerable to the impact of climate change. Some residents have no choice but to move away—a trend that is breaking up communities and changing the social fabric for future generations.
Rapid and often unplanned urbanization has devastated the natural landscape that once served as a buffer for erosion and flooding. These developments disproportionately affect the poorest and most marginalized, and will intensify due to climate change. While countries have started to contain erosion and flooding, there is an urgent need for partners to mobilize financing through coordinated regional action. Collaboration at the policy and technical levels helps countries to manage erosion hotspots, and to maintain the livelihoods that a healthy coastal ecosystem provides to people and economies.
