Climate change, informal settlement governance and justice-oriented urban adaptation in Ngozi mine, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Abstract Informal settlements across the Global South are increasingly exposed to climate-related risks while remaining marginalized within formal urban governance and climate adaptation planning. This study examines the relationship between climate vulnerability, informal settlement governance, and justice-oriented urban adaptation in the Ngozi Mine settlement on the outskirts of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Grounded in the Climate Justice framework and Urban Political Ecology, the study argues that climate vulnerability in informal settlements is not merely environmental, but is politically and infrastructurally produced through uneven urban development, insecure tenure, and exclusionary governance systems. A qualitative case study design was adopted, utilizing semi-structured household questionnaires and key informant interviews with municipal officials, community leaders, and civil society representatives. Thematic analysis was used to examine residents lived experiences of climate risk, adaptation, and governance exclusion. The findings reveal that households in Ngozi Mine experience interconnected climate-related hazards, including water scarcity, heat stress, flooding, and pollution associated with the adjacent Richmond landfill. These risks are intensified by inadequate access to water, sanitation, electricity, durable housing, and formal municipal services. Despite these structural constraints, residents demonstrate adaptive agency through livelihood diversification, informal savings groups, community cooperation, and locally developed coping strategies. However, limited participation in decision-making processes and the continued classification of the settlement as “illegal” restrict institutional support and climate adaptation investment. The study concludes that sustainable urban climate adaptation requires justice-oriented governance approaches that recognize informal settlement residents as legitimate urban citizens and active participants in resilience-building processes. The paper contributes to emerging debates on climate justice and urban adaptation by demonstrating how infrastructural inequality and governance exclusion shape climate vulnerability in marginalized urban spaces.