Early warning systems only work when everyone can act on warning messages. Evidence from a project in Kenya shows that when barriers to participation are addressed, people with disabilities take protective action at similar rates to people without disabilities. In areas where the project was delivered, more than 93% of people with disabilities who received a warning message took protective action. This affirms the principles at the heart of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction – that exclusion is driven by systemic barriers, not individual capacity.
Promoting inclusive climate resilience in Kenya
The project offers three key learnings. First, co-designing early warning systems with marginalised groups makes warnings more accessible and trusted across entire communities. Second, investing in climate resilient livelihoods is an essential component of early warning early action, because households cannot protect what they cannot afford to lose. Third, local leadership by Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) drives lasting change. Through the project, OPD members participated in all the local climate change committees and helped shape the first Bungoma County Climate Change Policy.
Who should read this?
This brief is for anyone interested in how to make early warning early action system inclusive, and especially policy makers, programme implementers and funders. It will be particularly useful for those working in disaster risk reduction and anticipatory action, as well as OPDs seeking evidence to support their advocacy efforts.
The project was delivered by CBM Global, the Kenya Red Cross, the Disability Empowerment Network (DEN) and the county government of Bungoma, with funding from the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (DFAT ANCP). Its activities reflected all four pillars of the Early Warnings for All initiative, offering a practical model for inclusive early warning systems in other regions disproportionately impacted by climate risk.