Enabling adoption of climate resilient policies in Uganda

The global exacerbating effects of climate change require timely and continuous innovative strategies that facilitate proper functioning of climate related policies. However, this entirely lies within the ability of policy makers and actors’ to adopt climate related policies. Adoption would equally require realization of policy makers and actors’ needs. Policy makers and actors’ are in this regard challenged to ensure that the climate related polices within different government ministries, entities, and sectors jointly address climate change. Challenges affecting adoption of policies include inappropriate ICT, weak institutional systems, and lack of understanding on the importance of gender and climate change. The study adopts a multi-dimensional approach to investigate the ICT, institutional and gender related factors that affect adoption of climate related policies. Data collection from 113 policy makers and actor’s involved use of the purposive sampling technique, respondents were from Kampala, Mbale, Nwoya, and Luwero in Uganda. Methods used to elicit information from the policy makers and actors’ included semi-structured and key informants interviews. While quantitative data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics, qualitative data were summarised through content analysis. Major findings show that 49% of the policy makers and actors possessed a postgraduate qualification. Findings also revealed that the most indicated needs involved capacity building 84% on the importance of gender and climate change, while 82% indicated that they needed opportunities for learning from other countries on implementation and 61% that they needed creation of climate change information hubs. While the study concluded that policy, makers and actors lacked an enabling environment to enable policy adoption. It recommended that policy makers and actors needed adequate capacity building to enable adoption of policies.