Climate Change Development Planning Training Course

Duration 10 days 16 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends National planning officers, Sector ministry managers and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-CCA-021

Before you join: Participants should have professional experience in development planning, public policy, sector programming, environmental management, infrastructure, finance or related fields.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Climate hazards increasingly disrupt public services, infrastructure, food systems, health outcomes and fiscal stability. Development plans that treat climate change as a separate environmental issue often miss the decisions that determine exposure and vulnerability: where assets are built, how land is allocated, which households receive services, how budgets are prioritised and what data informs investment choices. Planning teams need a disciplined way to translate climate evidence into sector priorities, financed actions and measurable results.

This course develops the methods used to integrate climate adaptation into national, subnational and sector development planning. Participants assess climate risks using the IPCC risk framework; identify vulnerable groups, systems and locations; review policy and institutional arrangements; screen development objectives for climate relevance; and formulate adaptation options. The course also covers climate-informed public investment, adaptation finance, budgeting, monitoring, evaluation and learning. Participants work with National Adaptation Plan processes, Nationally Determined Contributions, Sustainable Development Goals and development planning cycles.

Teaching combines short technical briefings, public-sector and development cases, facilitated analysis, planning simulations and structured peer review. Cases reflect decisions faced by ministries, municipalities, development banks, utilities, agricultural agencies and humanitarian organisations. Throughout the course, participants develop a climate-responsive planning package for a selected country, city, sector or programme. The final output is a complete adaptation integration plan containing risk evidence, priorities, actions, institutional responsibilities, financing assumptions and monitoring indicators.

The course suits professionals responsible for planning, budgeting, policy, infrastructure, resilience programming or development cooperation. It is particularly relevant where climate commitments must be translated into practical medium-term plans, annual budgets and project pipelines.

What you will be able to do

  • Apply the IPCC risk framework to assess hazards, exposure, vulnerability and adaptive capacity
  • Conduct climate risk and vulnerability assessments using quantitative and participatory evidence
  • Screen development policies, plans and projects for climate adaptation entry points
  • Formulate adaptation objectives, results chains and prioritised action portfolios
  • Appraise adaptation options using multi-criteria analysis and economic decision tools
  • Integrate climate priorities into public investment, budgeting and financing processes
  • Design adaptation monitoring, evaluation and learning frameworks with measurable indicators
  • Produce and present a climate-responsive development planning package

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce defensible climate adaptation inputs for national, sectoral or local plans
  • Assess climate risks without relying solely on specialist modelling teams
  • Lead structured discussions between planners, sector experts, finance teams and communities
  • Build a practical portfolio of prioritised adaptation actions and investment concepts
  • Explain adaptation priorities clearly to senior decision-makers and funding partners

For your organisation

  • Improves alignment between development plans, climate commitments and sector investments
  • Strengthens justification for resilient infrastructure and public service expenditure
  • Creates clearer institutional accountabilities for adaptation implementation and reporting
  • Improves readiness for adaptation finance proposals and donor programme negotiations
  • Reduces maladaptation risks in policies, projects and capital investment decisions

Course modules

16 modules over 10 days

Participants can explain how climate risks affect development planning choices and institutional mandates.

  • Climate hazards, exposure and vulnerability within development planning decisions
  • IPCC risk framework linking physical hazards with development outcomes
  • Adaptation, resilience and disaster risk reduction distinctions clarified
  • Development planning cycles from national visions to annual budgets
  • Climate change entry points within policies, plans and investment programmes
  • Maladaptation risks created by poorly designed development interventions

Participants can interpret climate information appropriately for planning and investment decisions.

  • Observed climate trends from temperature, rainfall and extreme-event records
  • Climate projections, scenarios and uncertainty for planning timeframes
  • Downscaled climate data limitations and appropriate interpretation boundaries
  • Return periods, probability and intensity for infrastructure design decisions
  • Selecting climate information sources for national and local planning
  • Communicating uncertainty without weakening adaptation investment decisions

Participants can identify development conditions that increase climate vulnerability and inequality.

  • Poverty, gender, disability and marginalisation as vulnerability drivers
  • Livelihood sensitivity to drought, flooding, heat and ecosystem change
  • Critical services mapped through water, health, transport and energy dependencies
  • Urban growth patterns shaping exposure to heat and flood hazards
  • Conflict, displacement and fragility considerations within climate vulnerability analysis
  • Stakeholder mapping for groups facing disproportionate climate impacts

Participants can conduct a structured climate risk and vulnerability assessment for a planning area.

  • Problem framing defines decision context, scale, timeframe and users
  • Hazard profiles compiled from climate records and local knowledge
  • Exposure mapping identifies people, assets, ecosystems and services at risk
  • Sensitivity analysis identifies conditions amplifying potential climate impacts
  • Adaptive capacity assessed through assets, institutions, knowledge and access
  • Risk matrices rank consequences, likelihood and planning urgency

Participants can incorporate stakeholder evidence and local knowledge into climate risk assessments.

  • Participatory rural appraisal tools capture seasonal climate impacts
  • Seasonal calendars identify livelihood, disease and service disruption patterns
  • Transect walks document local exposure, drainage and ecosystem conditions
  • Focus group protocols address gendered and differentiated climate impacts
  • Triangulation compares community evidence with scientific climate information
  • Ethical data collection protects participants facing sensitive vulnerability risks

Participants can diagnose policy and institutional conditions for adaptation mainstreaming.

  • Policy coherence review compares climate, development and sector commitments
  • Institutional mapping identifies mandates, incentives and coordination gaps
  • National Adaptation Plan processes linked with development planning instruments
  • Nationally Determined Contributions translated into domestic implementation priorities
  • Legal and regulatory provisions affecting resilient land and infrastructure decisions
  • Stakeholder influence analysis identifies champions, blockers and implementation partners

Participants can identify practical entry points for adaptation within planning and programming processes.

  • Development objectives screened for climate sensitivity and adaptation opportunities
  • Sector strategies reviewed against identified climate risk pathways
  • Planning entry points aligned with revision cycles and budget calendars
  • Project concept notes screened using climate risk management criteria
  • Climate-sensitive decisions prioritised by urgency, reversibility and investment scale
  • Cross-sector dependencies identified before defining adaptation interventions

Participants can formulate context-specific adaptation options that address defined risk pathways.

  • Theory of change links adaptation actions with resilience outcomes
  • Structural, institutional, behavioural and ecosystem-based options compared
  • Ecosystem-based adaptation assessed for services, limits and maintenance needs
  • Climate-resilient infrastructure measures matched to hazard and service risks
  • Social protection instruments considered for climate shock response
  • Adaptation options specify beneficiaries, delivery mechanisms and assumptions

Participants can prioritise adaptation actions using transparent technical, social and financial criteria.

  • Multi-criteria analysis weights effectiveness, equity, feasibility and cost
  • Cost-benefit analysis estimates avoided losses and investment returns
  • Cost-effectiveness analysis compares options delivering similar adaptation outcomes
  • No-regrets and low-regrets measures identified under climate uncertainty
  • Distributional analysis tests who benefits, pays and remains excluded
  • Sequencing distinguishes immediate actions from longer-term transformational measures

Participants can integrate adaptation priorities into sector plans, strategies and investment programmes.

  • Agriculture plans address drought, pests, irrigation and extension services
  • Water planning incorporates catchment risks, demand scenarios and allocation rules
  • Health strategies address heat, vector-borne disease and service continuity
  • Urban plans integrate drainage, heat management and risk-sensitive land use
  • Transport portfolios assess climate exposure across critical network assets
  • Energy plans account for hydrological variability and cooling demand

Participants can apply climate risk information to spatial planning and infrastructure decisions.

  • Risk-sensitive land-use zoning restricts development in high-hazard locations
  • Infrastructure asset registers include climate exposure and criticality data
  • Design standards reviewed against projected rainfall, heat and wind conditions
  • Nature-based solutions integrated with grey infrastructure investment options
  • Strategic environmental assessment identifies cumulative climate and development impacts
  • Asset management plans schedule resilience upgrades and maintenance priorities

Participants can connect adaptation priorities with financing strategies, public budgets and expenditure tracking.

  • Climate public expenditure reviews identify adaptation-related budget allocations
  • Climate budget tagging classifies expenditures using defined adaptation criteria
  • Medium-term expenditure frameworks connect priorities with fiscal ceilings
  • Public investment management screens capital projects for climate risks
  • Adaptation finance sources compared across domestic, bilateral and multilateral channels
  • Project pipelines structure investment concepts for financing readiness

Participants can design feasible adaptation implementation arrangements across responsible institutions.

  • Results frameworks assign outputs, outcomes, responsibilities and timeframes
  • RACI matrices clarify accountable, responsible, consulted and informed roles
  • Interministerial coordination mechanisms align planning, finance and sector mandates
  • Capacity assessments identify technical, organisational and fiduciary constraints
  • Procurement considerations address climate specifications and contractor performance
  • Implementation roadmaps sequence approvals, financing, delivery and review milestones

Participants can design monitoring and learning systems for adaptation actions and outcomes.

  • Adaptation indicators distinguish inputs, outputs, outcomes and impact signals
  • Baselines establish reference conditions before adaptation implementation begins
  • Indicator protocols define data sources, frequency, ownership and quality checks
  • Outcome harvesting captures unintended results and institutional change evidence
  • Theory-based evaluation tests assumptions within adaptation results chains
  • Learning loops revise plans using monitoring evidence and stakeholder feedback

Participants can communicate adaptation priorities and manage political economy constraints affecting implementation.

  • Decision-maker briefs present risks, costs, options and recommended actions
  • Climate narratives connect adaptation investments with visible development benefits
  • Political economy analysis identifies interests, incentives and reform constraints
  • Stakeholder engagement plans define messages, channels and feedback mechanisms
  • Risk communication avoids false certainty and technical jargon
  • Negotiation strategies address trade-offs between sectors, places and groups

Participants can build, review and present a complete climate-responsive development planning package.

  • Planning scope defines geography, sectors, institutions and decision timeframe
  • Risk assessment synthesises hazards, exposure, vulnerability and adaptive capacity
  • Priority adaptation actions respond to evidenced risk pathways
  • Financing strategy links actions with budgets, projects and funding sources
  • Implementation framework assigns responsibilities, milestones and coordination arrangements
  • Monitoring plan specifies indicators, baselines, data sources and review cycles
  • Peer review tests feasibility, equity, climate rationale and policy alignment

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Climate risk and vulnerability assessment template
  2. Climate-responsive development plan outline
  3. Adaptation option prioritisation matrix
  4. Climate budget tagging checklist
  5. Adaptation results and monitoring framework
  6. Implementation roadmap and RACI matrix

Who should attend

  • National planning officers — translate climate commitments into development plans and budgets
  • Sector ministry managers — incorporate adaptation priorities into sector strategies and investments
  • Local government planners — prepare climate-responsive municipal plans and infrastructure pipelines
  • Development programme managers — design resilient programmes with credible adaptation results
  • Public finance specialists — connect adaptation priorities with budget processes and expenditure tracking
  • Development bank and NGO advisers — support government-led adaptation planning and implementation

Skills and tools covered

Climate risk assessmentAdaptation planningVulnerability analysisClimate budget taggingAdaptation financeResults-based monitoring

Tools and standards

IPCC risk framework, National Adaptation Plan Technical Guidelines, Climate Public Expenditure and Institutional Review, RACI matrix

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish methods, followed by case analysis drawn from public planning and development programmes. Participants interpret climate evidence, assess planning documents, compare adaptation options and develop planning outputs in small groups. Simulations test coordination between planning, finance and sector institutions. Facilitated peer review is used to challenge assumptions, distributional impacts and implementation feasibility. Individual application planning connects course methods to participants’ current plans, programmes, investment pipelines or policy assignments.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have professional experience in development planning, public policy, sector programming, environmental management, infrastructure, finance or related fields. They should be comfortable reading planning documents, interpreting basic tables and discussing institutional responsibilities and budgets. Familiarity with climate change concepts, national development plans or project design is useful but not essential. The course introduces the climate science and adaptation terminology needed for planning work. No advanced modelling, GIS capability, economics qualification, emissions inventory experience or prior National Adaptation Plan involvement is required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants need experience with planning, policy, programmes, projects, budgeting or sector management. The course introduces the climate concepts needed for adaptation planning, so advanced climate science or modelling knowledge is not required.

Participants should bring a current development plan, sector strategy, project concept, budget document or policy issue they want to improve. Digital copies are useful, but no specialist software or datasets are required.

It is designed for public-sector planners, sector managers, local government staff, development practitioners, finance specialists and advisers supporting adaptation programmes. It is most useful for professionals who influence plans, investments or implementation arrangements.

This course focuses on managing climate impacts such as floods, droughts, heat, sea-level rise and service disruption. It does not focus on greenhouse gas inventories, carbon accounting, emissions trading or decarbonisation strategy.

Participants can use the assessment templates, prioritisation criteria and planning structure to review an existing policy, plan or investment pipeline. The methods support preparation for plan revisions, budget submissions, donor discussions and project design.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. The first part builds assessment and planning methods, while the later part applies financing, implementation and monitoring tools before the final capstone presentation.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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