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Earth Today | Adaptation Fund Board approves US$58M in new projects, expands small grants partnership

Published:Thursday | October 26, 2023 | 12:06 AM
 Mikko Ollikainen, head of the AF.
Mikko Ollikainen, head of the AF.

THE 41st meeting of the Adaptation Fund (AF) Board, held earlier this month in Bonn, Germany, concluded with the approval of US$58 million in new adaptation projects and programmes.

This includes an additional US$20 million for the Adaptation Fund Climate Innovation Accelerator (AFCIA) small grants programme.

Among the newly approved projects are those in Peru, the Central African Republic, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Libya, and Belize. The project in Belize was approved under the Enhanced Direct Access window, which is designed to build the capacity of local organisations through locally led action.

The two AFCIA small grants programmes approved by the board will be implemented by the Fund’s accredited multilateral implementing entities, the World Food Programme and the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, which join other AF implementing partners already administering AFCIA.

As new AFCIA partners, each organisation will receive US$10 million to administer and aggregate small grants (up to US$ 250,000 each) to a wide range of local actors – from CSOs, local governments and businesses to young entrepreneurs, among others – to support innovation in adaptation.

The approval of the AFCIA programmes is a continuation and expansion of AFCIA, which has been successfully implemented since it was launched in 2019. AFCIA provides small grants to developing countries to support innovation for effective, long-term adaptation to climate change and is part of the AF’s Innovation Facility.

To this point, the UN Development Programme and UN Environment Programme in conjunction with the Climate Technology Centre and Network have been working with the Fund to administer the grants and have collectively funded over 50 innovation projects in developing countries.

RECORD DEMAND

As AFCIA has grown and demand risen, AF decided to invite additional implementing partners to expand the partnership and further accelerate innovation in adaptation.

AF head Mikko Ollikainen noted that the approval of nearly US$60 million in new adaptation projects and expansion of the small grants innovation programme through AFCIA “will enhance the Adaptation Fund’s concrete adaptation actions on the ground”.

“The Fund has grown rapidly over the last several years, with more than 150 projects in over 100 countries, as the adaptation urgency has increased. We see continued record demand for projects from the developing countries we serve with an active project pipeline of projects waiting for funding of nearly US$ 500 million,” he said.

“With a resource mobilisation target of US$300 million this year, we will increase ambition and synergies at all levels to continue to help meet the record demand for projects and the adaptation urgency across the globe. To respond to that urgency, the board earlier this year rolled out an expedited process for project proponents to receive timely feedback on their proposals, and we see that it has translated in shorter project preparation times,” Ollikainen said further.

Among other decisions, the board approved reaccreditation of the Direct Access national implementing entity, Ministry of Finance and Economic Management of the Cook Islands, to continue its partnership with the Fund under the fast-track reaccreditation process. This brings the total number of AF-accredited implementing partners to 55, including 32 NIEs, nine Regional Implementing Entities, and 14 Multilateral Implementing Entities.

Watson Assistant