Lawrence Guodaar

The concept of non-economic loss and damage (NELD) of climate change has emerged strongly in the international policy arena in the past few years. Nonetheless, while research on climate-induced loss has focused on the economic dimension, the non-economic aspects have often been side-lined in academic research and policy debate. This paper draws on in-depth interviews and a focus group with farmers to develop a comprehensive understanding of climate-induced non-economic loss and damage in southern Ghana. A key finding of the research is that climate change has a non-economic loss aspect, leading to a loss of social cohesion and indigenous knowledge of farming. We further demonstrate that the loss of social cohesion and indigenous knowledge of agriculture drives individualism among farmers. Our findings have implications for climate change adaptation strategies and policies across the global South.

In recent years, sustainability concerns have gained increasing attention among countries and stakeholders worldwide. Towards the transition to sustainable rural development, the rural web framework (RWF) has become a consistent tool. Indicators from the RWF have been used to explore sustainable rural development for decision-making tasks, which improves the social, economic, and environmental performance of rural regions. However, the application of the RWF in studies is on the decline. Furthermore, there is a lack of literature reviews on the importance of the RWF and its relationship with different facets of sustainable development. We conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) (a) to explore how studies have used the RWF in the context of sustainable development and (b) to identify areas for further research. This study found that the RWF has mostly been used in developed countries, with fewer applications in developing countries. We suggest that there should be increased application of the RWF, particularly in developing countries, to broaden the rural web–sustainable development discourse and its relevance. This paper presents several areas where the indicators of the RWF can be applied to illustrate their relevance for policy decisions towards the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Drought intensity and associated risks are increasing in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) with dire implications for agroecological systems. Yet, quantitative and qualitative assessments of the intensity and severity of drought risks in dryland farming systems, particularly in northwest Ghana where climate change is multiplying the effects of drought on farming operations, have been limited. Monitoring the droughts and such extreme occurrences is vital to successfully developing local-based livelihood strategies that target sustainable development goals, particularly food security and poverty in SSA. The study used a rainfall anomaly index (RAI), principal component analysis (PCA) and binary logistic regression to analyse and understand drought indices of 40 years (1981–2020) of daily rainfall data obtained from two agrometeorological stations and assesses the coping measures prioritised in rural communities for drought risk management. Results show that northwest Ghana has been experiencing severe intermittent drought risks in the last four decades of extreme episodes observed in 1983 and 1984. The study found edible wild fruit picking, migration for labour work, seeking help from friends and family members, livestock rearing, petty trading, and basket weaving as key coping measures employed by household farmers to manage drought risk. Marital status, household size, market access, and farmland size typified significant factors that predict farmers’ coping decisions and practices. We suggest policymakers mainstream the outreach and access of the social safety schemes in drought-affected locations to build resilient livelihood and food systems.