Development of a vulnerability assessment for Burundi

Population growth, high land-use pressure and the lack of sustainable resource management practices put Burundi´s land and water resources at risk. Climate change – going along with increased climate variability and a higher frequency of extreme events – will further increase these pressures with particularly severe consequences for the rural populations.

Against this backdrop, GIZ implements a programme on "Reduction of the Impacts of Climate Change on the Availability of Water and Land Resources" in Burundi. Within the framework of this programme and in cooperation with the European Academy (EURAC) in Bolzano, Italy and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), adelphi conducts an integrated vulnerability assessment on the national and local level.

The first stage saw a national vulnerability analysis with a focus on vulnerability in subsistence farming and malaria-related risks. The vulnerability maps generated during this process facilitated the identification of regions of particularly high sensitivity to climate change (hotspots). The second stage built further upon this work, identifying three hotspot regions and conducting detailed, participatory vulnerability analyses.

The results of the integrated vulnerability assessment were documented in a three-volume report and in the summary of early developments made in work on climate projection. They were disseminated to partners and key stakeholders on the national and local level and will inform the development and monitoring of specific adaptation measures in the hotspot regions.