Supporting Resilient Human Settlements in Pacific Island Countries

The objective is to strengthen the
long-term resilience of human settlements (cities and towns) in Pacific Island
Countries (PICs) by supporting national and local governments to develop strategies
and technical options for disaster-resilient, climate-adaptive settlement
development and basic infrastructure service provision. The project will
undertake analytical work and advisory support in the Republic of the Marshall
Islands (RMI), Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Tuvalu based on existing World Bank
engagements.Through two
components, this project will support the governments of the Republic of
Marshall Islands, Vanuatu, Kiribati, and Tuvalu to develop forward-thinking,
risk-informed urban development approaches, with a special focus on the
long-term resilience of cities and towns and associated core infrastructure. Component 1 will provide analytical and technical support to inform long-term adaptation options
and planning for resilient settlements in Pacific atoll island countries. This work will build on the first phase TA under Building Resilience in Pacific Atoll Island Countries. The analytical support (known as the Atoll Study) will
include the identification, appraisal, and communication of adaptation options/pathways
for long-term habitability of the atoll countries. This could include an assessment of the order-of-magnitude costs of
various options; the combination and ‘tipping points’ for adaptation options;
the layers of additional risk information required; and analysis of
incentives to enable safer and better-managed use of land. The component will also support a stocktake
of current financing options for long-term adaptation measures that the
atoll countries could access. Component 2 will provide technical and analytical work to support planning and investment in resilient
sites and settlements in Vanuatu. The Government of
Vanuatu has requested IDA 19 financing for a proposed Enabling Affordable and Resilient Settlements project, which would
support: (i) affordable and resilient new settlement development on
Government-owned land, and (ii) affordable and resilient upgrading of existing
settlements.