Search Climate Insights Directory

The report reviews 24 financing strategies from developing countries, categorizing them into discrete adaptation strategies and general climate action strategies. It finds that while these documents help communicate priorities and attract international grants, there is a significant gap in strategic analysis regarding how to leverage public finance to attract private investment. The report emphasizes the need for stronger engagement from ministries of finance and planning, as well as improved country-level tracking of climate finance to measure the actual impact of these strategies.

Kenya's NAP 2015-2030, led by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, seeks to integrate climate change adaptation into national development planning and budgeting to achieve a low-carbon, climate-resilient economy. The process identifies key climate impacts such as sea level rise, floods, and drought, and prioritizes sectors including agriculture, health, water, and infrastructure. Implementation is supported by the National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) II (2018-2022), which serves as the vehicle for delivering both the NAP and the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).

The document proposes a framework for Namibia's climate adaptation Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) system, designed to track adaptation measures, evaluate their effectiveness in reducing vulnerability, and inform policy. It emphasizes aligning the MEL system with the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) and the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), while leveraging existing data systems from the National Statistics Agency and the National Planning Commission. Key recommendations include appointing a dedicated MEL coordinator, developing a results framework with a Theory of Change, and piloting a detailed MEL plan in the agriculture sector over the next two years.

The Somali National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process, led by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, utilizes a participatory and gender-responsive approach aligned with peacebuilding. The process is currently supported by a Green Climate Fund-funded NAP Readiness Project implemented by the UNDP. Key adaptation priorities include sectors such as agriculture, water, health, and coastal zones, addressing impacts like severe droughts, flooding, and sea level rise. Significant milestones between 2018 and 2022 include the launch of the National Disaster Management Policy, the National Climate Change Policy, and the 2021 NAP Framework.

The document analyzes the AfCFTA's potential to industrialize Africa and create a market of 1.3 billion consumers. It highlights a decline in Korea-Africa trade since 2011 and suggests that Korea leverage its strengths in capital goods, specifically the automotive and shipping sectors, to integrate into emerging African regional value chains. The authors recommend that Korea pursue formal economic partnership agreements with African regional economic communities, focusing on asymmetric trade liberalization and supporting Africa's green energy transition.

The proposal seeks USD 1,000,000 over 24 months to address Oman's lack of a national low-carbon transportation strategy and the rapid growth of transport-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The project, implemented by UNIDO, aims to create a national low-emission public transport strategy, develop a pipeline of bankable projects for GCF funding, and improve energy efficiency in mobile air-conditioning and marine transport. It focuses on overcoming barriers such as insufficient data, weak institutional coordination, and a high reliance on private vehicles driven by subsidized fuel policies.

The document outlines a plan to transition the Economic and Social Development Agency (ADES) from a humanitarian organization to a GCF-accredited entity. It identifies critical gaps in ADES's fiduciary standards, environmental and social safeguards (ESS), and gender policies. The proposed 18-month intervention includes updating organizational manuals, training staff on climate finance and GCF investment criteria, and co-developing three project concept notes and one Project Preparation Facility (PPF) request. The goal is to increase Chad's country ownership of climate projects and enhance the implementation of its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Country Programme.

The proposal seeks USD 2,545,711 over 36 months to address fiscal vulnerabilities and institutional gaps in the Dominican Republic. Key initiatives include developing a National Climate Finance Strategy, preparing for sovereign green bond issuance, implementing debt-for-climate swaps, and establishing a National Financing Vehicle. The program also aims to green the banking sector, integrate climate criteria into public-private partnerships (PPPs), develop a National Ecotourism Strategy, and create 436,065 green jobs through vocational training. Additionally, it provides technical support to accredit two national entities as GCF Direct Access Entities.

A coalition of civil society organisations condemns the UNDP's signing of an MoU with the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (MMSEZ) in South Africa. The letter argues that the MMSEZ is a coal-dependent project that would generate approximately 1 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent over its lifetime, jeopardising South Africa's Paris Agreement commitments and exacerbating water insecurity in the Limpopo region. The authors further claim that the UNDP's grievance mechanisms, specifically the Stakeholder Response Mechanism (SRM) and the Social and Environmental Compliance Unit (SECU), are inadequate because they are reactive and do not cover non-binding MoUs that lend legitimacy to flawed projects.

The Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) highlights the need for integrated planning to manage synergies and trade-offs between the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The briefing presents the Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) as a unique open-access, quantitative, and prospective tool capable of analyzing both Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and SDGs. SEI's Initiative on Integrated Climate and Development Planning has expanded LEAP with extensions for macroeconomic impacts, health, agriculture, and land use, which have been applied in 16 countries to quantify the co-benefits of climate action.

The proposal outlines a 24-month program implemented by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) to address gaps in Thailand's climate finance architecture. Key objectives include supporting Kasikornbank's GCF accreditation, updating the 2017 Thailand Country Programme (TCP) to align with the updated NDC and Long-term Low Greenhouse Gas Emission Development Strategy, and creating a national climate finance strategy. A central component is the design of the Thailand Circular Economy Financing Facility (T-CEFF), a blended finance mechanism intended to de-risk investments in Municipal Solid Waste to Energy (MSW2E) and bioenergy projects, targeting a USD 200 million loan portfolio by 2025. The project also aims to refine the National Designated Authority's (NDA) no-objection procedure to better accommodate private sector proposals.

The document examines the operationalisation of the Paris Agreement's Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF), which mandates that all countries submit biennial transparency reports by December 31, 2024. It highlights the shift toward standardised reporting and review processes to increase accountability for Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). While the ETF aims to build trust and facilitate ambitious climate commitments, the author notes that developing countries face significant barriers in technical capacity, particularly in greenhouse gas accounting and measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV). The brief advocates for integrating climate tracking into national budgets, enhancing stakeholder engagement, and increasing capacity building for adaptation and loss and damage reporting, particularly in Africa.

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) Secretariat developed this guidance to address historical challenges where funding proposals, particularly for adaptation, failed to demonstrate a sufficient climate rationale, leading to delays or non-endorsement by the Technical Advisory Panel (TAP). The document defines climate rationale as the 'overarching narrative of a proposal which ensures that it addresses climate change'. It establishes four high-level principles for adaptation (Identification, Response, Alignment, and Monitoring and Evaluation) and five principles for mitigation (alignment with country priorities, methodological quantification, relevance of methodology, consistent assumptions, and MRV systems). To support these standards, the GCF plans to launch the 'GCF Climate Information Gateway' and a 'Climate Information Expert Advisory Forum' to provide AEs and countries with tools, data, and capacity-building support.

The report finds that updated NDCs from 156 countries provide an additional global emission reduction of approximately 3.8 to 3.9 GtCO2eq by 2030 compared to previous submissions. However, these reductions are insufficient to meet Paris Agreement temperature goals, needing to be three to seven times greater to align with 2 °C or 1.5 °C targets. If unconditional NDCs are implemented, global emissions are projected to peak by 2025 and remain about 3% above 2015 levels by 2030.

The briefing outlines the complexities of establishing the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) for climate finance, emphasizing the need for a science- and equity-based approach over purely political targets. It highlights the lack of a common definition for climate finance and the necessity of aligning the NCQG with the Paris Agreement's articles and the actual needs of developing countries. The text argues for a more balanced allocation between mitigation and adaptation, the inclusion of loss and damage, and a focus on fair access to finance that avoids increasing the debt burden of vulnerable nations.

The Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) is launching a program to train 'Climate, Environment and Health Responders' in the Americas. The initiative focuses on a transdisciplinary (TD) approach to bridge the science-policy gap, targeting a diverse group of stakeholders including government officials, researchers, and community leaders. The program consists of a 7-week virtual mentorship and training phase, an in-person regional grant development workshop, and the awarding of seed grants for pilot studies or further grant development. A key requirement for seed grants is the procurement of co-funding, with a particular emphasis on supporting member countries with lower science and technology capacity.

The document outlines how climate-induced loss and damage (L&D) violates fundamental human rights and calls for the establishment of a Loss and Damage Finance Facility (LDFF) and the operationalization of the Santiago Network (SNLD) based on human rights standards. It highlights specific examples of L&D in South Africa, India, Pakistan, and the Arctic, arguing that wealthy nations have an extraterritorial obligation to provide compensation and support. The authors advocate for inclusive Loss and Damage Needs Assessments (LDNAs), universal social protection schemes, and legal protections for climate-induced displacement.

The report finds that implementing Africa's NDCs will cost approximately USD 2.8 trillion between 2020 and 2030, with a 'climate finance need' of USD 2.5 trillion after accounting for USD 264 billion in domestic public commitments. Current annual flows of USD 30 billion cover only about 12% of the required USD 250 billion per year. Mitigation accounts for 66% of needs, dominated by the transport sector (largely due to South Africa), while adaptation represents 24%, likely underestimated due to data gaps. The report highlights a heavy reliance on public finance (87%) and recommends that the UNFCCC provide standardized guidance and capacity support to improve the robustness of national needs assessments.

The report finds that implementing Africa's NDCs will cost approximately USD 2.8 trillion between 2020 and 2030, with a 'climate finance need' of USD 2.5 trillion after accounting for domestic public commitments. Current annual flows of USD 30 billion cover only about 12% of the required USD 250 billion per year. Mitigation accounts for 66% of needs, heavily skewed toward South Africa's transport sector, while adaptation represents 24%, likely underestimated due to data gaps. The report highlights a significant reliance on public funding (87%) and recommends that the UNFCCC develop standardized guidance and that countries adopt more participatory, bottom-up needs assessments to mobilize private capital.

The report details the evolution of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) from its founding in 2000 to its role in the Paris Agreement. It highlights how the EIG's unique composition—including both developed and developing nations—enables it to facilitate compromises on technical and political issues such as climate finance, transparency, and carbon markets. The document also examines the individual contributions of member states like the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Monaco, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Georgia to global climate science and policy.