ECO-logical Frameworks in International Development: New tools to boost aid effectiveness and address climate change and gender equality in Africa and the MENA Region

According to the World Bank (WB, 2021-2025), the frequency of droughts in Africa and the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region has tripled in the last few decades, yet the effectiveness and sustainability of aid interventions are still at risk despite huge planning efforts by the international aid community. In contrast, non-traditional development actors, more rooted in local social institutions, often manage to meet local needs despite the lack of coordinated planning, large funding and media coverage (Saggiomo, 2020). This project aims to support communities and women in Africa and the MENA region facing the challenges of climate change through a new approach to planning development interventions. Specifically, the project is revising the Logical Framework Approach to make it more flexible and responsive to changing local climatic and social contexts. What local coping practices already exist among women and communities affected by climate change in Africa and the MENA region? What indigenous knowledge exists for coping with climate change? What are the key elements that enhance the effectiveness of aid interventions, in contexts exposed to climate change hazards? How can international aid effectively support communities and women to adapt to the current and future impacts of climate change? The research is grounded in the notion of human agency and draws on social capital theory, political economy/ecology, and the literature on non-traditional aid actors such as diasporas and Islamic NGOs. It will take place in six countries: South Africa, Mozambique, Kenya, Tanzania, Morocco and Egypt, in partnership with local universities and NGOs participating in the recently approved (March 2025) UNESCO Chair on Gender and Climate Change in International Development, of which I am co-chair, with Prof. Ersilia Francesca as chair. The expected impact of the research is to strengthen the resilience of the communities and women in countries and contexts exposed to conflict and climate change hazards, and to improve the effectiveness of aid interventions. The new project management tools (the ECO-Logical Framework), if adopted and used by the international aid community, will support the emergence of virtuous practices to address the negative impacts of climate change, making them sustainable and scalable.