About this project
One of the policy themes of Woord en Daad focuses on climate resilience for the most vulnerable. In the coming years, we aim to foster collaborations between communities to learn how to cope with climate change.
Southern leadership
The Benkadi project is a strategic partnership between organizations from the North and the South, involving residents of four African countries: Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, and Mali, in policy-making, planning, and implementation related to dealing with climate change in their countries. Benkadi means ‘collaborating in the same direction.’ The Benkadi project is unique because from the start, the decision was made to empower local partners with leadership. The strength, culture, and creativity of the local partners are maximally challenged and utilized. Southern leadership is the strength of this project. The Southern direction must meet all standards, and therefore, efforts are made to address issues such as fraud, misconduct, and the like. The funding is organized in the South. From there, funds are transferred to the regions, and financial reporting also takes place in the South.
Power analysis
In collaboration with The Broker and WUR, a power analysis tool is being developed so that in 2021, the internal power dynamics can be assessed for each country (Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Mali), as well as the possible influences people may have.
Each country has its own focus
Each of the four countries faces unique challenges, so we emphasize different aspects. The overarching problem is that more and more families are confronted with extreme poverty due to climate change. We specifically target women, youth, children, and people with disabilities.
Changing living environment
The living environment for residents of Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast and Mali is changing due to climate change. This makes it difficult for local communities to sustain themselves, as they heavily rely on natural resources. Many residents of these countries are farmers. Due to significant fluctuations in rainfall, they lose their crops—either due to insufficient rain over an extended period or excessive rain in a short period.
Project Manager
Antonie Treuren – a.treuren@woordendaad.nl
Project website
www.benkadi.nu