Barriers to climate change policy responses for urban areas: a study of Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, Ghana

•External pressure, quest for legitimacy, co-benefits and ‘peer pressure’ are potential drivers for policy adoption.•National directives on climate change were an initial drive for policy responses by Tamale Metropolitan Assembly (TaMA).•Minimal consideration was given to climate change policies in the TaMA development plan (2010–2013).•The limited perception of co-benefits of climate change policies creates barriers for sustained action by metropolitan governments.

Climate change has emerged as an urgent issue around which both ideas of development and practice are crystallising both in the North and South. However, in this discourse the concern with climate change seems not to dwell much on seeking a better understanding of the barriers to climate change policy responses in different contexts. This paper explores the extent to which climate change ideas are received and converted into policy and programmes by local governments, with reference to Tamale Metropolitan Assembly in Ghana. This study highlights that limited perception of development co-benefits, and the tensions in negotiating national directives and local priorities constrain policy responses to climate change.