22 March 2018: A project seeking to advance the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) process has kicked off in Liberia. A workshop in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has highlighted the critical role of climate change information and knowledge management (IKM) in adaptation and resilience planning.

Liberia’s NAP project is the first African project to be financed by the Green Climate Fund (GCF). It aims to advance the NAP process for medium-term investment planning in climate-sensitive sectors, including agriculture, energy, waste management, forestry and health, and in coastal areas in Liberia. Implemented by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and national partners, it benefits from US$2.3 million in GCF funding. The project will work to strengthen institutional frameworks and coordination for implementation of the NAP process. It will seek to expand the knowledge base for scaling up adaptation, build capacity for mainstreaming adaptation into planning and budgeting processes and systems, and formulate public, private, national and international financing mechanisms to enhance adaptation efforts in the country. [National Adaptation Plans in Liberia Project Webpage] [UNDP Climate Change Adaptation Press Release]

Liberia’s NAP project benefits from US$2.3 million in GCF funding.

Delegates from the Government of PNG, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and Griffith University, Australia, convened to identify climate change IKM needs and barriers in PNG. Participants agreed on priority actions for establishing a strategic framework and work plan for PNG’s Climate Change and Development Authority (CCDA), the lead government climate change agency. They also discussed challenges of information dissemination in PNG, including limited internet infrastructure in remote areas and language barriers, and options for stronger intergovernmental collaboration and key enablers for successful implementation of the CCDA’s IKM goals.

The workshop was part of the Pacific iCLIM 2 Project, which aims to support regional management of climate change information across the Pacific region. Funded by the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs, the project is implemented by Griffith University in partnership with SPREP. [SPREP Press Release] [Pacific iCLIM 2 Project]

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