Infrastructure is a priority areas for the integration of climate science into decision making. Infrastructure which is being planned now may now be operational in a future climate significantly different to the historical climate commonly used for planning and design. Existing and planned infrastructure assets may also not be able to cope sufficiently with current levels of climate variability, with climate change exacerbating future risks. This is especially true of long-lived infrastructure, operational over decades and for periods often exceeding its original design life.
This paper focuses on port infrastructure in sub-Saharan Africa. It further investigates climate change risks and  the use of climate science in decision-making processes as it pertains to African port infrastructure as well as the climate change related risks to African ports, the role of climate services in long-lived infrastructure and the current status of climate change in port planning and decision-making. Recommendations are then put forward as to how existing and planned port infrastructure can be made to be climate resilient, through increasing awareness of climate change and its effects, research and improving policy and planning processes.
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