Guinea-Bissau Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC), September 2015.

The National Programme of Action for Adaptation to Climate Change of Guinea-Bissau found that gradual increases in temperature and reductions in rainfall will significantly reduce agricultural productivity and exacerbate water shortages. It is therefore necessary and urgent that the Guinea-Bissau Government take initiatives such as the development of new, more resistant , crops and changes in agricultural systems in order to increase the resilience of its agriculture to climate change, the protection of coastal ecosystems and adopt measures to reduce long term risks, like the integration of climate change into local development plans, forest management plans and soil occupancy and, generally speaking, in development policies and strategies.
These changes are intended primarily to increase the food security of populations of rural areas in order to enhance their adaptation capacity, reducing pressure on forest and fishery resources and improving access to safe water for human consumption and livestock. All these trends and impacts have been observed and documented: National Second Communication on Climate Change (NSC); PRSP I and II, PANA, National Action Plan to Combat Drought and Desertification (NAP/CDD) and TERRA RANKA which is a major concern for the country.
The country plans in the short term to implement the following actions with financial, technological and capacity building support from the international community: Increase the percentage of protected areas from 15% to 26% and ensure its management, and an effective implementation of the Forest Act and the moratorium to ban the felling and export of timber over the next five years; Conduct a nationwide forest inventory; Develop an agro-ecological zone and forest management; Strengthen the existing capacity to participate in the REDD+ mechanism and consequently raise the national effort to combat the adverse impacts of climate change. Increase the adaptation capacity of national ecosystems through soil protection against water and wind erosion, and protecting the coast against rising sea levels and other types of erosion.
In the medium and long term Guinea-Bissau undertakes, provided there is financial, technological and capacity building support from the international community starting from the new climate agreement and green fund, to: Develop a national reforestation and sustainable management of forest and agro forestry ecosystems programme by 2025; Develop scientific and technical research on adaptation of new productive varieties with broad spectrum tolerance to climate adverse effects by 2025; Reduce illegal and indiscriminate felling of trees by 2030; Promote forestry/plantation of species resistant to drought and low rainfall by 2030; Develop an Integrated Management Programme for the Coastal Zone by 2025; 80% renewable energy in the national energy mix by 2030; Energy efficiency - reduce energy losses up to 10% in the 2030 time span; 80% of universal access to electricity by 2030; As a SIDS draw up a profile of Vulnerability & Resilience to climate change in the country.
The long-term objectives embodied in the introduction of "climate proofing" in sectors of activity through outlets/introduction: Short- cycle and drought resistant seeds; Hydro-agricultural Planning; Introduction of farming techniques resilient to the effects of climate change; Introduction of rapid growth fodder plant for animal feeding; Preparation of contingency plans for the management of climate risks and natural disasters; Capture and storage of rainwater (water retention basins and mini-dams) for water management in the dry season; Construction of grain banks and seeds; Infrastructure (roads, bridges, houses, etc.).
Guinea-Bissau has made internal efforts to become resilient to the effects of climate change. For greater efficiency, the initiatives taken in the context of climate change should not be isolated efforts, limited to the individual projects of adaptation or mitigation of climate change. These initiatives must be part of a consistent perspective of integration into a broader policy framework, developing strategic and programmatic approaches that integrate climate policy development, planning policy and action at national, regional and local levels, involving all sectors of the national economy and integrating all other dimensions of environmental management and natural resources, including biodiversity conservation, the sustainable management of land and water. These initiatives essentially aim to increase the food security of the populations of rural areas in order to enhance their adaptation capacity, reducing pressure on forest and fishery resources and improving access to safe water for human consumption and livestock.