A framework for assessing climate resilience of informal settlements: the case of Eswatini

Abstract

Informal settlements are the most climate change vulnerable areas in cities due to poor-quality buildings and infrastructure, and lack of risk-reducing measures. This paper presents a context sensitive resilience assessment framework to assess the climate vulnerability of informal settlements and identify actions to improve their resilience and functionality. While various frameworks exist for assessing urban resilience, few are directly applicable to the context and needs of informal settlements in African contexts. An informal settlement, Msunduza, located within a tropical climate zone in Eswatini, Southern Africa, was selected as a case study for the development of the framework. The study draws on in-depth expert interviews and field observations, to identify key climate change hazards, impacts to which informal settlements need to adapt, and vulnerable components critical for maintaining functionality under climate stress. The findings of the study were synthesized to develop a resilience assessment framework for informal settlements, incorporating components from established urban resilience assessment frameworks, with fine-grained observational tools. The study contributes to resilience thinking by offering a framework that could leverage informal settlement upgrading interventions. While based on the context of Eswatini, the framework is designed to be flexibly adapted to similar informal settlements in Southern Africa.