Abstract:
In recent years, climate change has become a major worldwide concern. Among its different manifestations in West
Africa, flood events are the most devastating. This chapter pulls out the main causes of floods in West Africa from
recently published research with the aim of serving as a guide in defining paramount actions to be taken to address
flood issues in the region. Inadequate urban planning, poor land management and land occupation, especially in
populated areas, amplify climate change impacts and increase flood risk. The situation is likely to worsen in the
future. The effectiveness of current adaptation and mitigation measures is analysed and recommendations on
possible follow-up actions are given. Given that the cost of inaction might exceed the cost of taking early action, this
chapter launches an appeal for concrete actions for flood impacts mitigation in West Africa.