News and Announcements
UNEP and the Government of Ghana have launched the process of developing a National Adaptation Plan (NAP) to reduce the negative impacts of climate change by building adaptive capacity.
The Government of Ghana has launched the process to develop a National Adaptation Plan (NAP) in efforts to build nationwide resilience to climate change impacts. The project is the first of its kind in Ghana to use future climate projections to plan over large timescales, up to the year 2080. Read more here
A UNEP project in Myanmar has been building the capacity among government officials to address the impacts of climate change, and to integrate climate adaptation and mitigation into Myanmar’s national policies. A 2nd phase of the project is now starting up.
Myanmar is widely considered one of the most vulnerable countries in the world in terms of the impacts of climate change. More intense and frequent floods, cyclones and droughts have caused immense loss of life and damage to infrastructure and the economy and put its renowned biodiversity and natural resources under increasing pressure. Read more here
Summary of organization’s priorities/mandate/core areas of engagement on matters related to capacity-building e.g., technical assistance/support, grants, secondment, staff training, e-learning/courses, assessments, etc
UNEP now has more than 15 National Adaptation Plan (NAP) projects, all of which help countries to increase their resilience to climate change by building adaptive capacity. Furthermore, UNEP has 45+ projects in Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), which involve capacity-building and training workshops for government staff. UNEP is also acting as a delivery partner for the Green Climate Fund Readiness Support Program, strengthening the capacities of developing countries to improve access to climate finance.
Capacity-building activities during the last quarter
Activity 1: Green Climate Fund Readiness Support Programme
UNEP is currently acting as a delivery partner for the Green Climate Fund Readiness Support Program, which aims at strengthening the capacities of developing countries to improve their access to climate finance. In the Africa Region, during the last quarter, five countries cooperating with UNEP have participated in a series of trainings on matters related to the Green Climate Fund. These trainings include:
- General understanding of the functioning and expectations of the GCF
- Role of the National Designated Authority; institutional arrangements and national programming required in Madagascar, Comoros and Niger
- Key conditions for the successful development of concept notes and full proposals in Eswatini and Zimbabwe
- Integration of gender considerations into the national strategy towards the GCF in Zimbabwe
- Accreditation of national entities in Eswatini, Zimbabwe, and Niger
These trainings target primarily the NDAs and the national committees in charge of overseeing the strategic dialogue with the GCF. However, they are often enlarged to a wide range of stakeholders in each country, including NGOs and the private sector.
As a result, the NDAs are better able to play their coordination role between national stakeholders (project owners, local governments, financial institutions, sectorial ministries), Delivery Partners and the GCF.
Activity 2: Webinar: How National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) Can Support Post-COVID Recovery Efforts
At UNEP, the Climate Change Adaptation Unit (CCAU) hosted a webinar on the 3rd August to focus on why NAPs offer a great opportunity to ‘build back better’, and how they can do this. The webinar was exclusive to the NAP Project Managers/Coordinators and Task Managers working on UNEP’s NAP projects. The results of the webinar, which included lengthy informal discussions, will be put together in the form of a briefing paper. Read more here
Activity 3: Ghana launches National Adaptation Plan (NAP) Process
UNEP’s NAP project in Ghana officially launched this week. “In light of the COVID-19 crisis, Ghana’s government will aim to use this NAP process to ‘build back better’, ensuring that post-COVID-19 recovery investments and stimulus packages are ‘climate-proof’”. The project is the first of its kind in Ghana to use future climate projections to plan over large timescales, up to the year 2080. The NAP process aims to reduce vulnerability to climate change by building adaptive capacity. Read more here
Publications
How To Articulate Integrated Responses To The Health, Economic and Climate Crises in Latin America & The Caribbean
Date: 1 June 2020
Author: UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
Considering the impacts of COVID-19, mainstreaming sustainability and climate proof solutions has never been more important. This brief describes the opportunities of integrating five key areas that can yield substantial economic growth and millions of decent jobs. Read more here
Activities Planned for the Next Quarter
Launch of the 2020 Tree Growing Month
Date: 7th August 2020
Venue: Gambia
The Gambia’s GCF-funded ecosystem-based adaptation project, supported by UNEP, is launching a vast tree growing campaign for 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. This media event will set afoot a vast campaign to restore large areas of degraded forests and agricultural lands using mixed local climate-resilient species. Community members are being trained by a team of experienced tree growers with support from the Department of Forestry. Capacity support will also be provided on tree maintenance and the critical fight against bushfire and free roaming animals from local herders. Read more here