The role of and challenges facing nongovernmental organizations (NGOS) in adaptation to climate change in Pakistan | |
| Author | Aslam, Muhammad Arslan |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.CC-23-01 |
| Subject(s) | Climatic changes--Pakistan Non-governmental organizations--Pakistan |
| Note | A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Climate Change and Sustainable Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Climate change is a major issue, and NGOs play an important role in tackling it. However, there is a lack of literature on the role and challenges faced by NGOs in carrying out adaptation in developing countries. Therefore, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that addresses these issues in the context of Pakistan. We used both quantitative and qualitative techniques to achieve our study objectives. The survey questionnaire was distributed among the establishments of NGOs to study the role and the factors that influenced the involvement of NGOs in different adaptation roles and semi-structured interviews were carried out with different stakeholders to find out the challenges these NGOs facing in Pakistan. The survey analysis showed that all types of NGOs have been involved in the adaptation roles in Pakistan and campaigners, awareness spreading, and relief providing were the top priority roles among the other roles. The regression analysis showed that the type of funding source and government cooperation has a significant impact on the adaptation roles. Moreover, the thematic analysis of qualitative data showed that NGOs have been facing financial, political, social, and capacity-related challenges in carrying out adaptation roles. It was found that there was limited availability of funds for NGOs that pushed them towards doing more direct and small roles. Moreover, there were capacity and competition-related issues that also limited the ability of NGOs to attract available funding. In terms of political challenges, it was found that the government has a selective approach towards establishing cooperation with NGOs playing different roles. Similarly, the thematic analysis showed that NGOs face social challenges such as lack of awareness, the materialistic approach of people and capacity challenges such as lack of infrastructure to carry out adaptation activities. NGOs must strike a balance between securing funding and remaining true to their core missions to ensure effective climate adaptation efforts. They must diversify their funding sources, build resilience to external shocks, communicate effectively, have sound systems for financial management, program monitoring and evaluation, and overall program performance, address challenges related to transparency and accountability, build cooperation and networking with other organizations, and come up with innovative approaches to increase public awareness and engagement with climate concerns. Systemic change and collaborative effort are necessary to tackle the complex issue of climate change. |
| Year | 2023 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Climate Change and Sustainable Development (CC) |
| Chairperson(s) | Ahmad, Mokbul Morshed |
| Examination Committee(s) | Thi Phuoc Lai Nguyen;Pal, Indrajit |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Asian Institute of Technology Fellowship |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2023 |