Outlook on Climate Change Adaptation in the South Caucasus Mountains

All three countries are parties to the Aarhus

Convention on Access to Information, Public

Participation in Decision-making and Access to

Justice in Environmental Matters. Azerbaijan ratified

this in 2000, Georgia in 2000, and Armenia in

2001 (UN 2015). The relevant national legislations

also reflect the principles and provisions of the

Convention. Therefore, stakeholder consultations

are held on most of the government policy

documents related to environmental protection and/

or climate change. However, mechanisms used for

consultations are not yet sufficient. Even when policy

documents reach the local and/or municipal levels

local stakeholders, due to a variety of reasons, have

Stakeholder consultations

no capacity to examine the documents and/or to

comprehensively contribute to consultations.

During the planning of adaptation action at

municipal or local levels performed by international

organizations or non-governmental organizations,

consultation processes are more reflective and

sophisticated. However, as yet, none of the local action

plans on adaptation have been approved or adopted by

local authorities. This can be explained by the inability

of non-state actors to justify and properly explain the

financial implications for implementation, given the

limited funding opportunities within local budgets.

Consequently, such consultations are often ineffective.

Beshbarmag mountain, Azerbaijan