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Kenya is a regional leader in renewable energy and climate action, but it lacks a formal, dedicated National Just Transition Framework. While elements of social equity and inclusion are embedded in the Constitution, the Climate Change Act (2016), and the second NDC (2031–2035), the transition is hindered by institutional fragmentation, a skills mismatch in the workforce, and inadequate data systems. The document highlights the energy sector as the cornerstone for decarbonisation, aiming for 100% renewable energy by 2035, and identifies agriculture, forestry, land use (AFOLU), transport, and waste management as other priority sectors. Key barriers include the financial vulnerability of those in the AFOLU sector due to carbon market fluctuations and a debt cycle where climate-resilient infrastructure diverts funds from worker retraining. The brief recommends that international actors provide technical capacity for policy integration, support the development of monitoring systems, and restructure global green value chains to ensure greater value-added benefits for producing countries like Kenya.

Uganda has developed a Just Transition Framework (JTF) to ensure that structural economic changes toward sustainability do not marginalize vulnerable groups, particularly informal workers and smallholder farmers. The framework is integrated into national planning cycles, including the Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV), and emphasizes distributive, procedural, and restorative justice. While Uganda has established multi-stakeholder coordination and project screening tools, it faces significant barriers such as a lack of a national resettlement policy, high labor market informality (over 80%), and severe data gaps. The document calls for international grant-based support for labor economy modeling, the creation of a national resettlement policy, and programmatic finance for re-skilling and livelihood restoration.

The document examines Indonesia's Just Transition (JT) agenda, primarily driven by the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). While a comprehensive framework exists on paper, implementation is hindered by governance restructuring, a narrow focus on the energy sector, inadequate financing for social components, and significant data gaps. The author argues for expanding JT principles across all economic sectors, strengthening subnational capacity, and increasing grant-based financing to ensure an equitable shift to a low-carbon economy.

The report identifies seven recurring patterns where international climate support reproduces structural barriers in the Global South, such as prioritising technical infrastructure over social protection and centralising decision-making power. Based on analysis of Chile, Indonesia, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, and Vietnam, it argues that Just Transition efforts are hindered by labour informality, contested land rights, and a lack of subnational delivery capacity. The framework recommends that the JTWP embed social requirements in finance, strengthen subnational institutions, develop justice-aligned data systems, shift from consultation to co-decision, and address the extractive dynamics of green supply chains.

The document identifies four primary constraints to South Africa's just transition: a significant finance gap, delivery frictions in project cycles, fragmented skills and employment pathways, and a lack of accountability and legitimacy. It argues that success depends on moving from high-level pledges to 'delivery-grade' finance and coordinated, place-based implementation, particularly in coal-affected regions like Mpumalanga.

Vietnam aims for net-zero emissions by 2050, targeting a 47% renewable energy share in electricity generation by 2030. While the country has integrated Just Transition principles into national strategies and secured a USD 15.5 billion commitment via the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), it faces significant gaps in governance, social protection, and workforce reskilling. The brief recommends establishing a National Just Transition Commission and expanding international finance to cover social dimensions beyond energy infrastructure.

The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), supported by the Climate Policy Initiative and Promethium Carbon, has developed two financial instruments to scale the voluntary carbon market (VCM) in South Africa. A proposed carbon credit-backed bond would raise capital for project loans, with repayments consisting of cash interest and carbon credits. A Carbon Repo Facility would provide short- to medium-term liquidity by allowing developers and banks to sell carbon credits with an agreement to repurchase them later. These tools aim to bridge the gap between high demand for offsets—driven by the national carbon tax—and a limited supply of bankable projects caused by high early-stage costs and regulatory ambiguity.

The Uganda Development Bank (UDB) has developed a Currency Risk-Sharing Facility (CRSF) to mitigate the foreign exchange (FX) risks associated with borrowing in hard currencies (USD/EUR) and lending in Ugandan shillings (UGX) for climate projects. The CRSF employs a layered risk-sharing approach, combining a partial hedge (e.g., currency swaps) with a tail-risk FX guarantee to protect against severe UGX depreciation beyond a dynamic threshold. Financial modeling indicates that the CRSF offers a more affordable and stable funding cost (average 9.82%) compared to full hedging (10.96%) or unhedged exposure (average 8.39% but highly volatile). The instrument is designed to be replicable for other public development banks in emerging markets and developing economies facing similar currency mismatches.

The report analyzes the challenges and opportunities for financing nature-based solutions (NbS) in Indian cities, noting a heavy reliance on public funds and a lack of bankable project pipelines. It maps a wide array of financial and business mechanisms—ranging from green bonds and CSR funds to land value capture—and provides early recommendations to improve the enabling environment, project bankability, and the diversification of funding sources to enhance urban climate resilience.

The document addresses the financing gap for urban Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in India, where investment remains heavily dependent on public funds. It proposes a three-step guidance framework: identifying the enabling policy environment, leveraging financial and business mechanisms, and applying a nine-factor project evaluation framework. The guide maps existing Indian national and sub-national policies—including forestry, water, and infrastructure schemes—that can be leveraged for NbS. It also catalogues various financial instruments (such as municipal bonds, green bonds, and blended finance) and business models (including carbon credits and user-pay systems) to improve project bankability. A repository of nine global and domestic case studies, such as Chennai's municipal bonds for stormwater drainage and Chicago's Tax Increment Financing for green roofs, illustrates replicable approaches for Indian urban contexts.

The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) utilizes a tiered 'Innovation Challenge' model to fund and scale bottom-up resilience solutions across the Global South. Since 2014, GRP has invested over US$45 million, supporting 102 solutions in more than 30 countries and benefiting over 7 million people. The 2026 portfolio focuses on three primary challenges: RAIN (nature-positive agriculture), RISE (informal urban settlements), and TECH (AI for humanitarian response). GRP provides a structured pipeline—Idea, Seed, Scale, and Amplify—combining financial grants with non-financial support such as mentoring and a Leadership Academy to make local innovators investment-ready.

The Western Cape presents a total investable renewable energy opportunity of R37.4 billion across approximately 2.35 GW of new capacity by 2030. While severe grid constraints on the Eskom network have limited new connections, the 2025 NERSA approval of a 4% congestion curtailment mechanism is expected to unlock 1,180 MW of wind capacity, attracting R20.1 billion in investment. An additional R14 billion is tied to 926 MW of wind and solar projects currently in the budget quote (BQ) phase. Behind-the-meter (BTM) solar PV and battery energy storage systems (BESS) for businesses represent a resilient R3.3 billion market, driven by rising electricity tariffs and corporate decarbonisation pressures, although projects over 1 MW face high compliance costs. Long-term growth is expected following transmission upgrades on the Cape Corridor scheduled for 2028–2031.

The document details a three-year partnership between the Anglo American Foundation and GreenCape to catalyse South Africa's fragmented Black Soldier Fly (BSF) sector. Central to this effort was the establishment of the Southern African Mass Insect Rearing Organisation (SAMIRO), a member-based industry body designed to provide a unified voice for advocacy and regulatory navigation. Despite achieving significant investment and job creation, the sector continues to face challenges from global volatility and waning investor risk appetite, leaving SAMIRO operating as a "minimum viable product."

The Western Cape water sector is transitioning toward innovative procurement and financing models due to tightening public budgets and increasing climate pressures. Significant capital expenditure is planned for 2025/26 to 2027/28, with approximately R16.5 billion from the City of Cape Town and R7.5 billion from other local municipalities. Key opportunities include public-private partnerships (PPPs) for large-scale infrastructure like desalination and water reuse, as well as a growing market for decentralized water-efficient sanitation solutions (WESS) in both public informal settlements and private property developments.

The document outlines a framework for the ethical application of Indigenous Knowledge in nature-based solutions and climate adaptation. It emphasizes the necessity of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC), the recognition of Indigenous women's leadership, and the shift toward direct funding for Indigenous-led initiatives. The brief draws on global frameworks like the Rio Conventions and specific regional protocols to bridge the gap between policy principles and the practice of engaging Indigenous Knowledge Holders.

The document outlines a framework for the ethical mobilization of Indigenous knowledge in climate and nature projects, emphasizing rights-based approaches, the necessity of free, prior, and informed consent, and the importance of direct funding and leadership for Indigenous peoples, particularly women and youth.

The NAP Global Network's 2025 report details its efforts to move developing countries from adaptation planning to implementation. Key achievements include supporting 18 countries in this transition, delivering 24 short-term technical assistance requests via the Country Support Hub, and managing 13 long-term In-Country Support Programs. The Network emphasizes the importance of monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL), gender equality and social inclusion (GESI), and the integration of nature-based solutions. A new strategic plan to 2030 prioritizes Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), with a focus on accountability, civil society engagement, and the alignment of adaptation planning with peacebuilding and the Global Goal on Adaptation.

The document outlines the benefits of the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process for the education sector, specifically how it elevates priorities in national decision-making and strengthens the case for financing. It details the relevance of four NAP stages—Impact, Vulnerability, and Risk Assessment (IVRA); Planning; Implementation; and Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL)—and provides ten specific actions for education ministries to ensure climate risks to schools, students, and teachers are addressed.

The ARE Energy Access Investment Forum 2026 brought together 1,400 participants from 87 countries to discuss renewable electrification. Key outcomes included the launch of the USD 25m ASCENT Project Preparation Facility by COMESA and a GDP 14m contribution from the UK's FCDO to the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa in the DRC. The forum highlighted systemic gaps in capital allocation for small African-led firms and the need to shift from supply-led to demand-led skills training for the green transition.

Benin's NDC 3.0 (2026-2035) aims to reduce cumulative greenhouse gas emissions (excluding the forestry sector) by 32.8% compared to a business-as-usual scenario, a significant increase from the 20.15% target in NDC 2.0. The plan includes 32 mitigation measures implemented through 180 projects, with the energy sector being the most prominent. Adaptation is a central pillar, focusing on eight key sectors, including agriculture, water resources, and health, to address high vulnerability and a low readiness score of 0.342. The total funding requirement for the 2026-2035 period is estimated at 14.488 billion USD, with 9.266 billion USD for conditional actions.