Community participation in climate change policy formulation and implementation in Lesotho
Loading...
Date
2023
Authors
Chatanga, Redemption
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
๐ข๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป: Climate change is prioritised as one of the 2030 sustainable development goals of the United Nations (UN) due to its global impact. If not addressed through climate governance and the adoption of appropriate policies, climate change may drive more than 100 million people into poverty by 2030. The success of climate governance and the implementation of climate change policies do not only depend on institutions such as the UN and its signatories, governments and activists, but have equally become the responsibilities of communities. However, the state of community participation in climate change policy formulation and implementation seems to be a challenge in Africa. A case in this regard, which is also the focus of this study, is Lesotho, which is affected by climate change, yet community participation in climate governance, particularly in policy formulation and implementation, does not seem effective. In Lesotho, it is evident that the threat of climate change is exacerbated by poor agricultural practices, deforestation and wildfires. In light of this, the current study explored community participation in climate change policy by presenting a contextual participatory strategy towards such participation in future policy formulation and implementation processes.
๐ ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐ฑ๐: Although Lesothoโs National Climate Change Policy supports community participation in climate change policies, community participation in climate governance seems to be lacking in the country. The extent to which the country will achieve adaptation to climate change mainly depends on the level of community participation in climate governance. This necessitates a contextual strategy in which communities are part of policy governance in climate change of which the current research aims to fill this gap.
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ป, ๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐ต๐ผ๐ฑ๐ผ๐น๐ผ๐ด๐: The qualitative research approach was adopted in this study. A case study design was applied to explore community participation in climate change policies by presenting a contextual participatory strategy towards such participation in future policy formulation and implementation processes. This design was executed in three stages (conceptual - Stage 1, theoretical - Stage 2 and empirical - Stage 3). Through qualitative methods of data collection (documents, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews), multiple sources of data were used to address the research problem.
๐๐ผ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฏ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป: The contribution of this study can be captured in respect of the discipline of Public Administration (PA), Lesothoโs policy agenda and community participation in climate change policy. Pertaining to PA, this study aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice through empirical data that analyse the relationship of community participation, participation theories and the practical application of the New Public Governance components through public administration and climate governance. In addition, the study adds to the ongoing debate and stimulates the discourse in respect of new contemporary participation methodologies that could enhance community participation in climate change policy formulation and implementation. Regarding Lesothoโs policy agenda, data were generated that could influence the policy agenda regarding community participation in future climate change policy formulation and implementation. This study contributes to a paradigm shift for increased legitimacy, acceptance and ownership of climate change policies, through community participation in future climate policy processes. This contextual research introduced novel insights regarding the use of indigenous knowledge systems in climate change policy formulation and implementation to facilitate community participation in climate governance. Concerning community participation in climate governance, this study contributed to the research agenda for future studies regarding community participation in climate change policy formulation and implementation, which is fundamental to the success of climate governance.
Description
Thesis (Ph.D.(Public Administration and Management))--University of the Free State, 2023
Keywords
Climate change, Climate governance, Community participation, Manonyane communities, New public governance theory, Policy formulation and implementation, Policy process