Integration of Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation in Narrative and Practice: The Case of the Prored Project in Ecuador

Disaster risk undermines climate adaptation. Around the world and especially in the Global South, adaptation gains are at risk of being lost due to overlapping fast-emerging hazards. Also, linkages between disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) policy and practice remain weak, encouraging unsustainable development planning practices and maladaptation.

Similarly, multi-risk countries like Ecuador develop DRR and CCA policies in isolation, without risk assessments and planning tools being jointly developed or aligned. For this reason, between 2020 and 2022, WFP Ecuador, with the support of USAID/BHA in coordination with the National Secretariat of Risk and Emergency Management, implemented the project "Strengthening local government capacity in DRR, preparedness and CCA with a focus on food security and gender in densely populated urban centers (PRORED)".

This project strengthened urban resilience, climate adaptation and DRR capacities and assets in the most vulnerable communities and neighborhoods of 7 cities in the country, benefiting around 5,240 families. Through participatory processes such as seasonal livelihood programming involving civil society, decision-makers and partners from academia, important results were achieved that reflected an effective synergy between science, policy and practice to integrate CCA and DRR.

Moreover, based on locally identified hazards, the project included climate adaptation and risk management into capacity building actions and concrete measures such as nature-based solutions and early warning systems. Thus, this case study aims to share concrete achievements, methods and good practices for integrating climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction into the narrative and practice as a basis for strengthening the resilience of communities most vulnerable to multiple hazards.