The Community-Responsive Adaptation study, which began in 2017, is a three-year research program funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and the Swedish Research Council. KDI is partnering with Stockholm University, Stockholm Resilience Centre, the Technical University of Kenya, Lund University and KTH Royal Institute of Technology to co-design, build and evaluate community-led responses to flooding at three locations in Kibera.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the responses, KDI and partners will carry out a 6-wave survey across 1,500 households in high flood-risk zones, comparing flood damages and other measures of welfare in households with the same baseline flood risk at treatment sites and comparable control sites. We will collect and analyze qualitative data in an attempt to understand the mechanisms behind the success or failure of intervention packages.

The study aims to provide ground-breaking, systematic evidence of the delivery, costs and impact of a model of “Community-Responsive Adaptation” that integrates community and city-level climate adaptation efforts in order to reduce local flood risk. Beyond its relevance to Nairobi, the study will have implications for other rapidly urbanizing cities in sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world.