How can governments engage in adaptation tracking? A protocol for assessing national adaptation policies

Abstract A myriad of frameworks to track adaptation to climate change have been developed in recent years. They have been instrumental in advancing the conversation on assessing adaptation progress and effectiveness across national and global scales. Surprisingly, very little attention is given to how countries can leverage existing policies to engage in adaptation tracking. We developed a Protocol to assess the ability of national policies to deliver comprehensive, coherent, and robust information on adaptation, which would allow governments to leverage existing efforts for engaging in country-driven tracking processes. The Protocol establishes data collection and analytical steps, including document screening, data extraction, quality assurance, and coding rules to ensure consistent interpretation and comparability of results. We applied the Protocol in an assessment of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) of African countries. The resulting dataset represents the most comprehensive overview available to date on existing entry points for adaptation tracking for Africa. While this can help show progress in adaptation planning, the real challenge lies in generating evidence of adaptation effectiveness. This requires complementary assessments of how intentions and plans translate into actions or results on the ground, aspects which our Protocol does not cover.