16 March 2018: Vanuatu began implementation of its first project fully funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), which aims to support the mainstreaming of climate change into five key development sectors: tourism, agriculture, fisheries, infrastructure and water. Benin and the Gambia launched projects to reduce the vulnerability and improve adaptive capacity of rural populations, and strengthen the resilience of the agricultural sector to climate change impacts.
Vanuatu’s ‘Climate Information Services for Resilient Development Project’ (CISRDP) will: invest in meteorological equipment, including installation of a new weather radar and an automated weather station; develop CIS and products tailored to end users; and contribute to capacity development through practical investments across the five key sectors to support the use of CIS for building resilience across national, provincial and community levels. Executed by the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geohazards Department (VMGD), the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and partners, the project spans four years (2018-2021) and has a total budget of US$20.5 million. [SPREP Press Release on CISRDP Launch] [SPREP Press Release on Vanuatu Becoming Climate Smart] [SPREP Press Release on SPREP’s Role in CISRDP Implementation]
PFAN identifies promising climate resilience and clean energy projects, provides them with free coaching until they are investment-ready, introduces them to private investors, and offers financing facilitation.
The project titled, ‘Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihoods and sub-national government systems to climate risks and variability in Benin,’ seeks to help include climate change and gender in development plans and budgetary processes, improve agricultural infrastructure and human capacity to cope with changing rainfall patterns, and diversify income-generating activities at the community level. Supported through the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and financed by the GEF Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF), the project will benefit 10,000 farmers, including over 3,000 women. [UNDP Climate Change Adaptation Press Release] [Project Webpage]
The Gambia launched a project on ‘Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans,’ seeking to prepare its agricultural sector for the impacts of climate change, and support low-carbon, climate-resilient development. Supported through the joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO)-UNDP Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans Programme (NAP-Ag), the project makes the Gambia the 11th country to join the multi-agency support programme, financed by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) through its International Climate Initiative (IKI). [UNDP Climate Change Adaptation Press Release] [Project Webpage]
In related news, the Private Financing Advisory Network (PFAN) issued an open-ended call for proposals for projects in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. PFAN identifies promising climate resilience and clean energy projects, provides them with free coaching until they are investment-ready, introduces them to private investors, and offers financing facilitation. Hosted by the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP), PFAN has thus far leveraged over US$1.2 billion of investment for the projects in its pipeline. [PFAN Call for Proposals]
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