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Since 2014, the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance has supported 78 instruments that mobilized over USD 4 billion, including USD 1.6 billion from the private sector. The report highlights the necessity of balancing innovation with 'actionability'—ensuring projects are bankable and scalable. Key strategies for unlocking private capital include blended finance to mitigate chronic risks, aggregation to handle small-ticket investments, and the use of Theory of Change (ToC) frameworks to quantify social and environmental impacts. Case studies illustrate successes like Brazil's Green FIDC, which achieved 100% private funding, and challenges like South Africa's Climate Adaptation Notes, which stalled due to an unreliable project pipeline. The document also emphasizes the importance of gender-responsive finance and the need for systemic regulatory shifts to make low-carbon investment the default for institutional investors.

The InvestHER Climate Resilience Bond is Uganda's first gender-focused resilience bond, designed to raise USD 25 million in local currency to close the gender gap in the agrifood system. The instrument targets growth-stage agri-SMEs and local financial service providers (FSPs) to increase the adoption of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) among women farmers. It utilizes a dual-tranche structure (commercial and concessional) and a grant-funded technical assistance (TA) facility to address barriers such as high collateral requirements and lack of female-tailored financial products. The bond aims to reach approximately 3,825 agri-MSMEs, with nearly 100% being women-owned or led, and impact 470,000 hectares of farmland.

The Resilient Municipal Market Fund (ReMark) is a proposed blended finance facility designed to address the lack of investment in African urban food markets, which are critical to food security but vulnerable to climate risks. The instrument combines a revolving debt facility for capital expenditure loans (USD 0.5-10 million) and a technical assistance (TA) facility managed by ICLEI Africa to prepare markets for investment. The pilot phase targets six municipalities in East and Southern Africa with a total budget of approximately USD 35 million, including USD 30 million in debt and repayable grants and USD 5 million in TA grants. ReMark categorizes markets into three types (A, B, and C) based on financial maturity, proposing different pathways to bankability, including a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) structure for the most challenged markets. Planned retrofits include cold storage, off-grid solar PV, and improved drainage to reduce food waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

The document unpacks the IPCC's findings on how systemic inequalities—including gender, race, and socio-economic status—increase vulnerability to climate change. It argues that adaptation efforts are more effective and less likely to be maladaptive when they incorporate inclusive participation, diverse knowledge systems, and a focus on climate justice. The brief uses illustrative examples from Africa to demonstrate how marginalized groups, such as Indigenous Peoples and women, experience disproportionate impacts and how community-based, human rights-based approaches can generate social co-benefits.

The IGAD mediation for South Sudan (2013-2015) was severely compromised because several member states were simultaneously conflict actors and mediators. Uganda provided military support to the government, while Sudan supplied weapons to the opposition. These rivalries prevented IGAD from reaching a consensus on security arrangements, reduced its leverage to impose sanctions, and undermined the impartiality of its envoys. Despite the signing of the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (ARCSS) in 2015, the process failed to end the war, which resulted in an estimated 190,000 to 400,000 deaths by 2018.

The document examines TotalEnergies' use of the bond market to secure long-term financing, noting a trend toward abnormally long maturities extending to 2064. It argues that these bonds provide the company with unrestricted funds to pursue fossil fuel expansion, contrary to IEA Net Zero scenarios, while creating systemic and financial risks for the banks and investors involved. The report identifies specific financial institutions facilitating these issuances and calls for a total cessation of support for companies developing new oil and gas projects.

The document analyzes TotalEnergies' reliance on the bond market, specifically highlighting a trend toward abnormally long maturities (up to 2064) that secures funding for decades of fossil fuel projects. It argues that these bonds provide the company with total freedom in fund allocation, enabling the expansion of oil and gas projects in 53 countries despite global climate goals. The briefing identifies a 'loophole' where banks facilitate these emissions to avoid having the debt on their own balance sheets, and warns investors of the systemic risk of 'stranded assets' as the world transitions to renewable energy.

Project Drawdown analyzed the NDCs of eight African countries—Congo, Ethiopia, Malawi, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda—to identify synergies between climate mitigation and socioeconomic development. While all eight countries acknowledge poverty and gender mainstreaming, only Congo, Malawi, and Rwanda explicitly link climate solutions to specific human well-being dimensions. The analysis identifies 14 frequently cited solutions, such as Clean Cooking and Distributed Solar Photovoltaics, but notes the omission of other high-impact 'double-duty' solutions like Reduced Food Waste and Family Planning and Education. The report argues for recognizing Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Use (AFOLU) actions as both mitigation and adaptation tools and diversifying decentralized renewable energy to combat energy poverty in rural communities.

The analysis finds that human-caused climate change has significantly increased the frequency of dangerous nighttime temperatures globally, affecting billions of people. Using the Climate Shift Index, the report quantifies additional nights above 18°C, 20°C, and 25°C, noting that these temperatures disrupt sleep and increase risks of cardiovascular conditions and mortality. The most severe impacts are observed in tropical regions and urban areas due to heat island effects, with specific cities in India, Indonesia, and Africa experiencing an additional month or more of extreme nighttime heat.

The report identifies currency risk—specifically the mismatch between local currency revenues and hard currency debt—as a primary barrier to climate investment in EMDEs. It argues that while long-term solutions require macroeconomic reform and deeper local capital markets, immediate needs must be met through innovative hedging mechanisms. The document analyzes five specific models: a TCX donor-funded guarantee, Eco Invest Brasil, the Delta onshore DFI platform, FSD Africa's MDB portfolio transfer, and a CPI FX Hedging Facility for India. It concludes that concessional capital is essential in the short term to make these tools affordable and to catalyze private investment.

The report examines benefit-sharing mechanisms (BSMs) in African carbon projects, highlighting the need for transparency, fairness, and community agency to attract high-integrity investment. It categorizes projects by risk—identifying community land-based projects as the highest risk—and proposes five core principles for best-practice BSMs. The authors argue that current low carbon prices fail to cover the costs of robust community engagement and call for regulatory frameworks and commercial financing tailored to the African context.

The report analyzes the East African avocado value chain, highlighting that while the sector drives economic growth, it faces significant hurdles in quality control, infrastructure, and climate resilience. It emphasizes the necessity of transitioning to sustainable, climate-smart agricultural practices to maintain access to the EU market. Key opportunities for upgrading include improving cold chain infrastructure, enhancing access to finance for smallholders, and developing value-added bioproducts from waste.

The August 2024 RAMP Roundup details the initiative's efforts to enhance climate resilience through strategic engagements with government ministries and universities in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda. Key activities include the launch of a 'Foundations Course' in Uganda, the use of the IMF's DIGNAD model for macro-climate modelling, and the establishment of a University Network Seminar Series. The newsletter also highlights research grants on disaster risk management and adaptation finance in Tanzania, Bangladesh, and sub-Saharan Africa, while noting that every dollar invested in adaptation can yield a return of $2 to $10.

The Institute for Economic Justice and the Universal Basic Income Coalition critique Sassa's implementation of biometric identity verification and algorithmic risk scoring for the Social Relief of Distress grant. They argue these measures exclude eligible recipients who lack smartphones, internet access, or smart ID cards, while raising concerns about data privacy and the lack of evidence for systematic fraud.

The Nature-Based Infrastructure Global Resource Centre analyzed the Bring Back Our Trees project in Kasese, Uganda, which aims to reforest 30,270 hectares to combat climate-driven floods and landslides. The analysis found that the nature-based infrastructure approach generates a total net benefit of USD 69.1 million, providing a return of USD 5.44 for every dollar invested. Beyond flood mitigation, the interventions support carbon sequestration, biodiversity, job creation, and soil erosion prevention.

The report analyzes seven categories of enclosure-based and open measurement methods for greenhouse gas emissions in sanitation systems. It finds that while enclosure-based methods like flux chambers are widely used, they are limited by scale. Emerging optical and remote sensing methods offer broader coverage but are constrained by high costs. The document highlights a critical lack of empirical data for non-sewered sanitation in low- and middle-income countries and advocates for standardized, affordable methodologies and increased collaboration to improve national greenhouse gas inventories.

The document examines the current state of circular economy trade measures notified to the WTO, noting a heavy bias toward end-of-life waste management over upstream resource efficiency. It proposes that the WTO facilitate a 'dynamic alignment system' using mutual recognition agreements, ISO 59000 standards, and cross-border extended producer responsibility schemes to support a global transition to a circular economy, particularly for developing nations.

As of 30 April 2024, the Green Climate Fund (GCF) had spent USD 32.9 million of its USD 125.4 million annual administrative budget (26%). The Secretariat accounted for the largest portion of expenditure at USD 27.2 million. The report details budget utilization across the Board, the Trustee, and three independent units: the Independent Redress Mechanism (IRM), the Independent Integrity Unit (IIU), and the Independent Evaluation Unit (IEU).

A coalition of environmental organizations, including Greenpeace and Reclaim Finance, responded to the French Senate's inquiry into TotalEnergies. While they welcome the report's critical assessment of TotalEnergies' "climaticide" strategy and its expansion of fossil fuels, they argue that the 33 recommendations lack the binding measures necessary to align the company with the Paris Agreement. The associations specifically criticize the absence of super-profit taxation and the perceived weakness of the French state in regulating the multinational.

The Global Resilience Partnership (GRP) reports significant progress between 2020 and 2023 in scaling resilience innovations, democratizing knowledge, and influencing global policy. Key achievements include the incubation of the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA), the growth of the Resilience Evidence Coalition to over 1,700 members, and the establishment of the Resilience Hub at COP26, COP27, and COP28. GRP focused on amplifying Global South voices through initiatives like the South to South Resilience Academies and the Locally Led Adaptation principles. The report highlights the mobilization of private sector finance through the PREPARE Call to Action and the implementation of innovation challenges such as RAIN in East Africa. These efforts are designed to transition GRP toward its 2024-2029 strategy, focusing on transforming food and financial systems and embedding resilience in the private sector.