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This paper aims to draw on community risk assessment (CRA) for assessing vulnerability to climate change in north-western Ghana, focusing on sunshine, temperature and wind, elements of climate which are seldom explored in vulnerability assessments to climate change.

The paper draws on data collected from a qualitative research design that used participatory rural appraisal methods, particularly, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and seasonal calendar analysis in three selected rural communities of the Sissala East District. Furthermore, an inter-generational framework was adopted for comparative assessment of vulnerability and changes in vulnerability to climate change.

The results show that the current generation of smallholder farmers is more vulnerable to climate change than the past generation, the era of grandparents. Thus, farmers are exposed to higher-intensity sunshine, temperature and wind in contemporary times than was the case in the past. Consequently, their livelihoods are affected the most by the damaging effects of these climatic hazards. The CRA process revealed the relevance of indigenous knowledge systems for vulnerability assessments and at the same time, underpins the need for adaptation of such knowledge if it is to sustain smallholder farmer efforts at climate change adaptation at community levels.

The paper recommends an endogenous development approach to climate change adaptation planning (CCAP), one that will build on indigenous knowledge systems for effective community education, mobilization and participatory response to climate change. Policy interventions should aim at enhancing climate change adaptation through innovations in soil and water conservation, access to water for irrigation and domestic use, climate smart-housing architecture and agro-forestry within the framework of decentralization and district development planning.

This paper will contribute to climate change research in two ways: first, by drawing attention to the usefulness of CRA in vulnerability assessment; and second, by focusing on climate elements which are critical for CCAP but rarely given sufficient attention in vulnerability assessments.

The paper examined how local authorities have attempted to rate undeveloped land as a means of mobilising revenues and the challenges associated with implementing this policy guideline. It focused on current practices in terms of policy and administration, the availability of undeveloped urban land, its revenue potential, and ways to improve policy for local land taxation.

Drawing from the mixed-method approach both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Officials of the Wa Municipal Assembly, Lands Commission, Land Use and Spatial Planning Authority were purposely selected based on their knowledge and the roles they play in property rating practice. They were interviewed to understand their perceptions and views on rating undeveloped lands. Stratified proportionate and simple random sampling methods were used to select respondents. The respondents included land and landed property owners in three selected neighbourhoods.

The paper found that there was the prevalence of undeveloped lands mainly held by speculators and individuals constrained by financial challenges to develop their parcels. The Wa Municipal Assembly is unable to implement the policy guideline on charging rent on undeveloped lands due to lack of adequate information and generally unwillingness to implement this provision. Besides, the current guideline is too prohibitive and cannot be implemented in its current form. However, there is a window of opportunity for the Assembly to build data on undeveloped lands and moderately begin the implementation of the policy guideline.

Urban growth in Ghana is characterised by leapfrog development with many patches of undeveloped land in and around cities. The property taxation policies largely do not focus on undeveloped land or unimproved site value. In Ghana, property rate policy on the tax base excludes undeveloped land. However, government policy guidelines prescribe the charging of rent on these lands by local authorities. This paper provides a comprehensive discussion on the revenue potential of undeveloped urban land and why local government authorities have not been able to harness this potential. The paper has therefore recommended ways local authorities can use to mobilise revenue from undeveloped urban land.

There is limited research in rating undeveloped urban land especially looking at it from the perspective of policy and implementation as well as current practices. The paper shed light on the prevalence of undeveloped urban land and the guidelines that exist help local governments mobilise revenue from these lands. It contributes to the understanding that local government can harness the revenue potential of undeveloped land if policy design and implemented regarding these lands is enhanced. The paper also provides a good background and framework for further studies.

This study aims to assess the facilities management (FM) strategies used in multi-tenanted purpose-built office buildings (Mt-POBs) in Ghana and the drivers that influence the decision to use such strategies.

This study was conducted via a survey and key informant interviews. The survey was conducted using a questionnaire targeted at 65 multi-tenanted office building owners in the Greater Accra region. The data from the survey revealed the views of building owners on FM strategy and the extent to which 20 facility management decision drivers influenced their decisions to use a particular strategy and the responses were descriptively analysed. The key informant interviews were conducted among six leaders of the property owners’ association who use in-house FM to further understand their perspectives and decisions on using such strategy. The interviews were conducted over telephone using an interview guide and analysed using thematic analysis.

The results showed that 88% of Mt-POBs in Ghana are managed in-house. The results also showed that the decision to use the in-house strategy was driven by the innovative, strategic and cost-saving advantages associated with the in-house strategy.

This study shows the factors that drive the decision of multi-tenanted office building owners in Ghana to use the in-house strategy. The findings of this study will be useful for prospective owners of office buildings in Ghana.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze vulnerability of food crop production to heavy precipitation in north-eastern Ghana, specifically, the upper east region (UER) and the policy implications for adaptation. Heavy precipitation events are a common part of climatic variability; but little attention is given to its impact on livelihoods as compared to droughts in research and policy domains.

This paper draws on both quantitative and qualitative research methods and data. Rainfall data are analyzed using the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI). This is compared with quantitative analysis of crop yields and complemented by narratives of farmers from in-depth interviews and focus group discussions.

The results show that heavy precipitation events often lead to low food crop productivity and this suggests that the latter is vulnerable to the former.

Although some adaptation is occurring through a wide range of local measures, these are inadequate for eliminating vulnerability. Thus, additional policy measures are recommended for enhancing farmer adaptation, including: incorporating climate change adaptation policies, including adaptation to heavy precipitation into District Development Planning; building human resource capacity for effective implementation of climate change adaptation policies at district levels; improving market access to seed through improved market infrastructure and rural transportation; establishing Community Seed Banks (CSBs) as back up sources of seed; promoting “nursing and transplant” as an alternative planting method for millet and guinea corn; promoting low costs solar drying technologies for drying food crops; and supporting livelihood diversification through credit and business development services.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze how farmers are reducing vulnerability of rain‐fed agriculture to drought through indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) in the Atankwidi basin, north‐eastern Ghana.

This paper draws on combined qualitative and quantitative research methods and data. First, the paper draws on qualitative data generated from in‐depth interviews and focus group discussions from purposively sampled farmers in the Atankwidi basin. It also draws on a survey conducted on 131 systematically and randomly sampled households in three communities of the basin, namely Yua, Pungu and Mirigu.

The results show that farmers are planting multiple indigenous drought resilient crop varieties and employing different rounds of seeding and or staggering planting between multiple farms. They are also applying indigenous forms of organic manure, checking soil erosion through grass strips and stone terracing and adopting paddy farming for improving soil and water conservation towards enhancing plant adaptation to drought. The paper therefore, asserts that through conscientious effort, farmers are reducing vulnerability of rain‐fed agriculture to drought through indigenous knowledge systems of drought risk management.

The paper recommends that capacity for managing vulnerability to drought at the local level, including the Atankwidi basin, can be enhanced by incorporating IKS into District Development Planning (DDP) and giving priority to the strategic role of IKS in climate change adaptation planning.

This paper fulfills a need for researching the relevance of IKS for reducing vulnerability of rain‐fed agriculture to drought in particular, and enhancing adaptation to climate change in general in the quest for promoting Endogenous Development (ED) in Africa.