Water–Climate Nexus: Exploring Water (In)security Risk and Climate Change Preparedness in Semi-Arid Northwestern Ghana

Water insecurity, intensified by climate change, presents a significant challenge globally, especially in arid and semi-arid regions of Africa. In northern Ghana, where agriculture heavily depends on seasonal rainfall, prolonged dry seasons exacerbate water and food insecurity. Despite efforts to improve water access, there is limited understanding of how climate change preparedness affects water insecurity risk in rural contexts. This study investigates the relationship between climate preparedness and water insecurity in semi-arid northwestern Ghana. Grounded in the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework, data was collected through a cross-sectional survey of 517 smallholder households. Nested ordered logistic regression was used to analyze how preparedness measures and related socio-environmental factors influence severe water insecurity. The findings reveal that higher levels of climate change preparedness significantly reduce water insecurity risk at individual [odds ratio (OR) = 0.35, p &lt: 0.001], household (OR = 0.037, p &lt: 0.001), and community (OR = 0.103, p &lt: 0.01) levels. In contrast, longer round-trip water-fetching times (OR = 1.036, p &lt: 0.001), water-fetching injuries (OR = 1.054, p &lt: 0.01), reliance on water borrowing (OR = 1.310, p &lt: 0.01), untreated water use (OR = 2.919, p &lt: 0.001), and exposure to climatic stressors like droughts (OR = 1.086, p &lt: 0.001) and floods (OR = 1.196, p &lt: 0.01) significantly increase insecurity. Community interventions, such as early warning systems (OR = 0.218, p &lt: 0.001) and access to climate knowledge (OR = 0.228, p &lt: 0.001), and long-term residency further reduce water insecurity risk. These results underscore the importance of integrating climate preparedness into rural water management strategies to enhance resilience in climate-vulnerable regions.