“By reducing the vulnerability of Vanuatu’s vital sectors and communities now to current climate-related risks should place the country in a better position to cope with future climate change and to build sustainable ni-Vanuatu communities. The ideal approach to adaptation in Vanuatu is a pro-active, no-regrets approach which encompasses measures and strategies which can be implemented in the present with the aim of reducing vulnerability in the future.

The Republic of Vanuatu ratified the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on 09 March 1993, and submitted its Initial National Communication (INC) to the UNFCCC on 30 October 1999. Following the preparation of its INC, Vanuatu has initiated efforts to create an institutional set-up that seeks to mainstream climate change issues into the national legal frameworks. Moreover, its INC provides compelling evidence that, by global standards, Vanuatu is one of the nations most vulnerable to climate change and sea-level rise.

Vanuatu ranks as the world’s most vulnerable country due to its high exposure to natural disasters, scattered island geography, narrow economic base, inadequate communication and transportation networks, and limited capacity to cope with disasters including those caused or exacerbated by the effects of climate change. Annually Vanuatu is impacted by a number of cyclones, which are expected to become more intense under current climatic projections, with coastal communities and ecosystems being most vulnerable and impacted by these events.

The first of the overall MESCAL project’s four outcomes is to produce national baseline information about climate change scenarios, use and values of mangroves and associated ecosystem.

This review aims to identify recent climate change projections (particularly sea level) and assess their likely impacts on mangroves and associated ecosystems and community livelihoods for the five MESCAL pilot countries.

This report explores the opportunities that recognising blue carbon could bring to Vanuatu. Commissioned by the Government of Vanuatu from the Commonwealth Secretariat, it sets out the opportunities, supportive arguments, and issues and potential barriers around incorporating blue carbon as part of their overall climate change adaptation and mitigation strategy.