Earth Today | Adaptation Fund Board ramps up efforts to help developing countries with climate worries

THE ADAPTATION Fund Board’s 39th meeting recently concluded in Bonn, Germany, with the adoption of a new five-year strategy, with increased ambition to help meet the adaptation needs of vulnerable countries.

The board also approved a new resource mobilisation strategy and action plan that aims to further diversify and expand its sources of funding. Other key decisions included the board greenlighting nearly US$53 million in new projects and programmes.

“In adopting the new five-year Medium-Term Strategy (MTS) 2 for 2023-2027, the board builds on the work of its current MTS for 2018-2022 that has increased the fund’s ambition and impact over the last five years,” noted a release from the entity, from which Jamaica and other Caribbean islands have benefited.

“Independent evaluations from the fund’s Technical Evaluation Reference Group concluded that the first MTS has been a good fit-for-purpose strategy, forward-looking and responsive to global adaptation imperatives, as it launched seven new funding windows to accelerate action, innovation, and learning and sharing in adaptation over the past few years,” it added.

The MTS 2 is to build on those achievements, while optimising the fund’s value and impact.

“It will continue its strategic focus in funding adaptation action, innovation, and learning and sharing, while increasing ambition under each pillar, strengthening linkages and synergies between them, and adding other cross-cutting features – such as fostering locally led adaptation and scaling up fund actions and results,” it noted.

“These will complement other cross-cutting elements in the strategy, including enhancing access to climate finance and building long-term adaptation capacities; empowering the most vulnerable communities as agents of change; advancing gender equality; and strengthening synergies with other adaptation funders,” the release said further.

With the board’s approval of the Resource Mobilisation Strategy, the fund will seek to diversify its funding sources and address a need for more predictable funding to help meet countries’ growing adaptation challenges and a large active pipeline of projects that haven’t yet been approved (about US$330 million in concrete single-country and regional project proposals, and another US$50 million in proposals through the fund’s emerging funding windows).

It aims to further leverage the fund’s strengths to help meet the adaptation objectives of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

“One of its key elements will be to expand its growing list of contributors to include additional national and subnational governments,” the release said.

The Adaptation Fund was the first to mobilise resources from subnational governments some years ago, and since then subnational government contributions have continued to grow and become a steady part of its funding.

In addition to mapping out potential new national and subnational contributors and proactively seeking funding from these entities, the fund’s strategy will also be to pursue and consider more opportunities with foundations and the private sector. The groundwork for this was laid when the board recently approved more flexible procedural steps for receiving contributions from alternative sources.

“We are pleased that the board took these key actions that will ultimately help and empower the most climate-vulnerable developing countries on the ground over the next several years to come,” said Adaptation Fund head Mikko Ollikainen.

“The Adaptation Fund’s new MTS will build on the fund’s unique experiences and knowledge in adaptation, while further strengthening and linking our strategic pillars of action, innovation, and learning and sharing, and providing more opportunities for countries to scale up effective actions and foster locally led adaptation on the ground,” he added.