August 2019: The UNFCCC Adaptation Committee has a published an online report on approaches to long-term adaptation planning that addresses topics related to various approaches to enhance long-term adaptation planning and action and shares information with Parties as they engage in the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) processes.

The UNFCCC Secretariat produced the report ahead of the 16th meeting of the Adaptation Committee, which will convene from 9-12 September 2019 in Bonn, Germany. The paper is intended as a contribution to the Committee’s work on offering technical support and guidance on adaptation action to Parties.

The report recognizes the increased attention being paid to long-term adaptation planning as beneficial to enhanced adaptation action. It also emphasizes the need for integrating adaptation with the SDGs and with long-term national development plans to ensure an adequate adaptation response.

The report describes the critical role that the NAP process plays in long-term adaptation planning, particularly as countries update their NAPs, by helping Parties to identify medium- and long-term adaptation needs, and to develop and implement strategies and programmes to address those needs. It contends that integrating NAPs into national development planning processes and strategies will help reduce vulnerability to the adverse impacts of climate change.

The paper summarizes information on long-term adaptation planning that could be useful for Parties as they engage in the the process of formulating and implementing NAPs. While no “one-size-fits all” approach exists for long-term adaptation planning, according to the report, such planning can benefit from lessons learned from short-term projects by using capacity built and knowledge collected and generated.

The report describes various approaches countries have used for long-term planning, many of which complement each other, including ecosystem-based adaptation (EBA), community-based adaptation (CBA), livelihood diversification and risk-based approaches. According to the paper, adaptation planners and implementers often use elements of several approaches to maximize advantages for a particular situation. A long-term adaptation approach, the publication notes, can help integrate adaptation into development planning processes and strategies, in a manner coherent between NAPs and the SDGs, within relevant sectors and at different levels, as appropriate.

The report also addresses incremental versus transformational change, an iterative approach to long-term planning, and the importance of effective institutional arrangements and stakeholder engagement. [Publication: Various Approaches to Long-Term Adaptation Planning] [Agenda for the 16th Meeting of the Adaptation Committee]