Overview

Lesotho faces increasing climate vulnerability, with droughts, erratic rainfall, extreme cold and land degradation affecting human development, especially for children and youth. The Lesotho Voluntary National Review (VNR) 2019 highlights that 33% of children under five are stunted, 34% live in extreme poverty, and rural households face chronic food insecurity driven by climate shocks. The VNR 2025 confirms that climate change continues to reverse development gains and disproportionately impacts women, children and youth, increasing risks related to health, nutrition, education and protection.

The National Adaptation Plan (NAP) identifies critical vulnerabilities across the agriculture, water, rangelands, health, and education sectors, on which children’s well-being heavily depends. It states that “Lesotho’s adaptive capacity remains significantly low due to limited climate knowledge, weak institutional coordination and inadequate participation of vulnerable groups.” Youth face barriers, including a lack of climate literacy, limited access to finance, exclusion from policy processes, and minimal inclusion in NDC/NAP implementation. Girls and young mothers are further disadvantaged by gendered labour roles, reduced school attendance during climate stress, and limited access to climate information.

The National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) and NAP both emphasise locally led adaptation, community resilience, climate-smart agriculture and the need for inclusive governance. However, the 2025 NDCs and NAPs Youth Consultation led by Plant One Tree found that over 60 youth-led organisations were not engaged in previous NDC/NAP processes, lacked access to climate data and decision-making spaces, and faced significant barriers to climate finance. Young people called for climate education, youth advisory structures, community-based adaptation projects, and inclusion in national monitoring systems. This programme directly responds to these gaps by strengthening child and youth participation in climate adaptation, enhancing climate education, and supporting youth-led, community-based resilience projects. It aligns with national priorities set out in the NCCP 2017–2027, which calls for inclusive, gender-responsive and community-based climate action. It also supports VNR 2025 commitments to enhance youth leadership, advance SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 4 (Education), SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 6 (Water), and improve resilience in vulnerable communities.

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