In 2010, WHO and UNDP launched the first global project on public health adaptation to climate change. This series of pilot projects aimed to increase adaptive capacity of national health system institutions, including field practitioners, to respond to climate-sensitive health risks.
The project
This project was executed by the Ministries of Health and other relevant national partners in Barbados, Bhutan, China, Fiji, Kenya, Jordan, and Uzbekistan. The experiences and lesson learned from this project significantly contributed to the identification of best practices to address the health risks associated with climate change.
All country projects shared four aims: to enhance early-warning and early-action systems; to build capacity of national actors; to pilot specific health risk reduction interventions; and to document and share lessons learned in addressing the health risks associated with climate change in their area.
This global project addresses a wide range of health concerns across a collective of seven countries, representing common health risks associated with climate change in Small Island Developing Sates (SIDS) as well as highlands, and water-stressed and urban contexts. For example, the China project focused on strengthening early-warning and response systems to extreme heat in urban settings; whereas the Jordan project focused on diarrheal disease control through safety of wastewater reuse as a response to water scarcity; and changes in vector-borne disease risks were addressed by the projects in the highland areas of Bhutan and Kenya, as well as on the Small Island States of Barbados and Fiji.
This WHO/UNDP project received US$4.5 million for activities from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) - Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) as well as significant co-financing and in-kind support for the period 2010-2014.
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- Barbados Adaptation Report
- Bhutan Adaptation Report
- China Adaptation Report
- Fiji Adaptation Report
- Jordan Adaptation Report
- Kenya Adaptation Report
- Uzbekistan Adaptation Report