Evaluating the impact of adaptation interventions on vulnerability and livelihood resilience

Robust evaluation of adaptation interventions is necessary to monitor adaptation projects and ensure broader accountability in adaptation responses. Yet, to date very few frameworks are formulated with a robust impact assessment in mind. This study uses the Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) research design to develop the BACI Adaptation Impact Evaluation Framework. The framework compares participating and non-participating households across time and was applied to panel data of 291 households, combined with ethnographic data, to evaluate the impacts of one of the Global Climate Change Alliance's (GCCA+) flagship adaptation and resilience projects in Tanzania. The results illustrate various benefits of the project, including strengthening social networks, providing education and diversifying information sources among the participating households. However, evidence of unintended consequences and maladaptation also exist, particularly among poorer non-participating households. We conclude that equitable adaptation requires longer projects that better target poorer households, engage with a broader array of climatic events, support the transfer of knowledge into action, and are more responsive to emergent trade-offs, ensuring that unintended impacts are minimized. The paper demonstrates how the application of the BACI Adaptation Impact Evaluation Framework provides a robust tool to assess the impacts of adaptation interventions.