22nd GCF Board meeting, February 2019
Namibia:
Building resilience of communities living in landscapes threatened under climate change through an ecosystems-based adaptation approach,
$9.1 million. Seventy percent of Namibia’s population depends on natural resources to sustain their livelihoods. The productivity of these natural resources is threatened by both climate and non-climate drivers, both which increase the vulnerability of rural communities. This project will use Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) as cost effective and low risk approach to build climate resilience across eight targeted landscapes in Namibia. The project is based on the premise that biodiversity and ecosystems provide valuable services that increase the climate resilience of local communities. Activities undertaken as part of the project will maintain and enhance ecosystem integrity to continue to support the generation of food and income in order to reduce the severity of negative socio-economic impacts of climate change on vulnerable rural households. In addition, adaptive capacities at the community level will be improved so that communities are able to sustainably manage natural resources.
Benin:
Enhanced climate resilience of rural communities in central and north Benin through the implementation of ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) in forest and agricultural landscapes,
10 million. Most of Benin’s rapidly growing population lives in rural areas, where agriculture supports about 70 percent of population’s livelihoods, and provides about 80 percent of export income to the economy. This strong dependency on agriculture is heavily impacted by environmental degradation and climate change. The project objective is to halt the negative cycle of climate change, agricultural yield depletion and natural resource degradation in central and northern Benin to build resilience of local communities, using an Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) approach. The EbA will integrate climate-resilient agriculture techniques with the tailored restoration of degraded forest ecosystems. Thus, the project will address current and future climate change impacts through three components focusing on restoration of degraded forest ecosystems, enhancing agricultural productivity and improving technical and institutional capacity of governments and communities.
Brazil:
REDD+ results-based payments for results achieved by Brazil in the Amazon biome in 2014 and 2015,
$96.5 million. This is the first project that has been approved under the GCF’s REDD+ results-based payments pilot programme. It provides payments for results derived from reducing emissions from deforestation in the Amazon region in 2014 and 2015. These results have subsequently been reported to the UNFCCC and undergone technical assessment and are fully compliant with UNFCCC requirements and the Terms of Reference for the GCF’s pilot programme on REDD+ results-based payments. Considering that Brazil will reinvest the proceeds received through this project in activities that are consistent with their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) established under the UNFCCC Paris Agreement and national REDD+ strategy, Brazil will use the proceeds for (a) Development of a pilot of an Environmental Services Incentives Program for Conservation and Recovery of Native Vegetation (Floresta+); and (b) for Strengthening implementation of Brazil’s REDD+ strategy.
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21st GCF Board meeting, October 2018
Guatemala:
Building livelihood resilience to climate change in the upper basins of Guatemala’s highlands,
$37.7 million. Three result areas: 1) Integrated climate-smart watershed management adapted to the local context of the Highlands. The main activities in this component are: i) Improved local capacities for climate action and watershed management and ii) Government forestry and agroforestry incentives supporting water recharge and productivity; 2) Community – led watershed management systems promoted through grant facilities. This result is oriented toward community-led implementation of climate actions in priority areas through funding from the grant; and has two main activities; i) Awarding and implementation of medium grants for second level CBOs and ii) Awarding and implementation of small grants for grassroots organizations; 3) Climate related information provided to farmers and target stakeholders. This result will improve multi-level and multi-stakeholder access to climate information that enhances agricultural and water management practices and programs. Main activities are i) Strengthened meteorological and hydrological information systems through investment in equipment for data collection, modeling, forecasting, and archiving, and ii) Design and implement a participatory early warning system for agricultural practices and water management.
Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria:
Programme for Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Niger Basin (PIDACC/NB),
$209.9 million. GCF-related outcomes include improvements in management, restoration and protection of natural habitats from climate variability and change; generation and use of climate information in decision-making; adaptive capacity and reduced exposure to climate risks; awareness of climate threats and risk reduction processes; and management of land or forest areas contributing to emissions reductions.
El Salvador:
Upscaling climate resilience measures in the dry corridor agroecosystems of El Salvador (RECLIMA),
$127.7 million. The project aims to improve the resilience of vulnerable family farmers to climate change through an integrated landscape approach, featuring: the promotion of practical on-farm measures for increasing the resilience of agricultural production systems (which form the principal bases of livelihood support systems); the introduction of household and community level systems for ensuring water supply through rainwater capture and storage; the maintenance of flows of environmental services of importance for livelihoods and agriculture, through improvements to production systems on-farm and the restoration and conservation of degraded ecosystems off farm.
India:
Enhancing climate resilience of India’s coastal communities,
$130.3 million. The proposed project supports the Government of India to enhance the resilience of vulnerable coastal communities to climate change through ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA). The project combines GCF grant finance with significant leveraged co-finance to shift the paradigm towards a new approach integrating ecosystem-centred and community-based approaches to adaptation into coastal management and planning by the public sector, the private sector and civil society. This will be achieved through investing in ecological infrastructure to buffer against climate-induced hazards, especially storm surges, supporting climate-resilient coastal livelihoods, and enhancing climate-risk informed cross-sectoral planning and governance of the coastal zone. The project objective is to enhance the resilience of the lives and livelihoods of the most vulnerable populations, particularly women, in the coastal areas of India to climate change and extreme events, using an ecosystem-centred and community-based approach.
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19th GCF Board meeting, March 2018
Tajikistan:
Building climate resilience of vulnerable and food insecure communities through capacity strengthening and livelihood diversification in mountainous regions of Tajikistan,
$10 million. This initiative will introduce adaption measures to address climate change effects leading to declines in agricultural yields, increases in food prices and reduced agricultural wages. It will focus on the most vulnerable and food insecure communities in the Rasht valley, Khatlon and Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO) regions. It will include an integrated approach to provide climate information services, capacity building, sustainable water management and resilient agriculture and forestry.
Rwanda:
Strengthening climate resilience of rural communities in Northern Rwanda (SCRNRP),
$33.2 million. This project will focus on increasing the climate resilience of vulnerable communities in nine sectors of Rwanda's Gicumbi District. It will restore and enhance ecosystems in degraded watersheds and increase the capacity of communities to sustainably manage forest resources. It will follow an integrated landscape management model.
Paraguay:
Poverty, Reforestation, Energy and Climate Change Project (PROEZA),
$90.3 million. Environmental conditional cash transfers (E-CCT) will be provided in exchange for community-based climate-sensitive agroforestry. This will serve as a bridge until new farming models are financially sustainable. Credit will be made available to establish productive forest plantations for bioenergy, timber and silvo-pastoral production (combining forestry with livestock grazing). Capacity building will support good governance and law enforcement.
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18th GCF Board meeting, October 2017
Bhutan:
Bhutan for Life,
$118.3 million. Bhutan for Life will support improved management of the country’s PAs, providing time and resources for the government to secure long-term revenues to maintain the improvements. Activities under the programme will increase forestry and land use climate mitigation, and support ecosystem-based adaptation to improve natural resource management and livelihoods, and enhance biodiversity.
Colombia:
Scaling Up Climate Resilient Water Management Practices for Vulnerable Communities in La Mojana,
$117.2 million. caling up climate resilient integrated water resource management practices will tackle barriers derived from climate change through a number of activities. Systemized knowledge management of the impacts of climate change on water management will enable better planning. Water resource infrastructure and ecosystem restoration will be promoted. Early Warning Systems for climate resilience will be improved. Finally, rural livelihoods will be enhanced through climate resilient agro-ecosystems.
Senegal:
Building the Climate Resilience of Food-insecure Smallholder Farmers through Integrated Management of Climate Risks (the R4 Rural Resilience Initiative),
$10 million. Risk-reduction activities such as water and soil conservation measures, increased water availability, livelihood diversification and training on climate-resilient practices will be undertaken. These activities will be complemented by risk transfer through a weather index insurance programme that will transfer risk to the international market and provide farmers with compensation in case of climate shocks. The government of Senegal will contribute half the cost of the insurance premium to enrolling households. Other activities to increase resilience will include creating risk reserves to provide farmers with the ability to save for greater sustainability, and facilitating the use of surplus production as collateral for loans to unlock credit for investment.
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15th GCF Board meeting, December 2016
Uganda:
Building Resilient Communities, Wetlands Ecosystems and Associated Catchments in Uganda,
$44.3 million. This project will help Uganda: Restore critical wetlands to improve ecosystem services - such as replenishing ground water, improving flood control, and enhancing the livelihoods of subsistence farming communities through fishing and agriculture; Enhancing the skills of people to diversify their livelihoods and become more resilient to climate shocks; and Improve the ability of communities in sensitive wetland areas to reduce climate risks and prepare them for climate-related disasters (including through decentralized early warning systems). This project will target south-western and eastern regions in Uganda, home to some of this Least Developed Country’s most vulnerable people - more than half of them women. While this climate initiative is based on grant financing, positive spillover effects are envisaged in the private sector as new revenue opportunities open up for people in rural areas.
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14th GCF Board meeting, October 2016
Ecuador: Priming Financial and Land-Use Planning Instruments to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation,
$84 million. Deforestation levels in Ecuador amounted to 109,000 hectares per year between 2000 and 2009, with over 99% of deforested land being transformed into agricultural areas. Ecuador’s REDD+ Action Plan addressed the drivers of this deforestation, with the aim of achieving net zero deforestation by 2020. GCF’s investment will co-finance the Action Plan. Targeted investment will control agricultural expansion into forest areas, whilst agricultural and livestock production practices will be implemented to reduce deforestation. Land-use zoning plans will be aligned with national climate change-related targets, and measures will be implemented to support restoration, conservation and sustainable production in vulnerable watersheds. The project will also ensure that financial instruments are aligned with the objectives of the action plan, by orienting public credit lines towards sustainable agricultural production practices, promoting tax incentives for REDD-supportive activities, and strengthening purchasing policies for deforestation-free commodities, their certification and traceability.
Namibia:
Climate Resilient Agriculture in three of the Vulnerable Extreme northern crop-growing regions (CRAVE),
$10 million. CRAVE will reduce food insecurity by allowing beneficiaries to acquire abilities to adopt conservation agriculture and climate-resilient agricultural practices to produce food, as well as providing them with access to renewable energy.
Madagascar:
Sustainable Landscapes in Eastern Madagascar,
$69.8 million. The project model is to initially address smallholder vulnerability through non-profit activities, that will prepare the smallholding farmers to eventually access private sector investment, providing a pathway out of extreme vulnerability and dependency. This approach is aimed at overcoming the barriers to private sector investment. Funds will be leveraged through the issuing of a pioneering Green / Climate Bond with all returns and profits being re-invested to capitalise a Climate Change Trust Fund for Madagascar. This will enable continued investment in landscape-level adaptation and mitigation activities.
Morocco:
Development of Argan orchards in Degraded Environment - DARED,
$49.2 million. The argan forest of Morocco, covering 2.5 million hectares, is recognised by UNESCO as a Biosphere Reserve with a rich biodiversity. There has been a “market boom” in argan oil, and its rising demand has improved household income for local communities but generated serious pressure on the natural forest, threatening its sustainability. The forest is also threatened by the impact of climate change upon its regeneration. Morocco committed within its INDC to reduce its Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emission by 32% by 2030 through mitigation activities. Morocco intends to plant 43,000 hectares of argan tree orchards and promote arganiculture as a priority activity to reduce GHG emissions. This project will strengthen the resilience of rural communities and the arganeraie biosphere reserve through planting 10,000 ha of argan tree orchards with soil conservation and rain water harvesting capabilities. Supporting argan plantations and arganiculture will also contribute to relieve the anthropic pressure on the natural forest, and improve livelihoods of the communities by moving from a model of fruit collection from natural forests towards sustainable forest co-management.
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13th GCF Board meeting, June 2016
Gambia:
Large-scale Ecosystem-based Adaptation in the Gambia River Basin: developing a climate resilient, natural resource based economy,
$25.5 million. Implementing Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) will both protect the environment and facilitate the development of the sustainable, natural resource-based economy to the benefit of local communities. EbA will be integrated into planning at national, district and village levels. Agricultural landscapes and degraded ecosystems including forests, mangroves and savannahs will be restored using climate-resilient tree and shrub species across an area of at least 10,000 hectares. This will be complemented by the establishment of natural resource-based businesses managed by local communities.
Tajikistan and Uzbekistan:
Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Program for the Aral Sea Basin (CAMP4ASB),
$68.8 million. GCF’s engagement will allow support for the adoption of climate-smart rural production and landscape management investments through a regional climate investment facility. This will target the poorest and most climate-vulnerable rural communities, benefiting farmers and village in particular. The facility will strengthen climate resilience and food security. Agricultural, land and water management practices will be implemented based on local agro-ecological conditions in order to strengthen climate change resilience. Investments via the facility will be demand-driven, but will include crop diversification, water resource management, rehabilitation of degraded land, conservation agriculture, livestock production improvements, agro-products processing, energy efficiency improvements and expansion of renewable energy sources.
Tuvalu:
Coastal Adaptation Project,
$38.9 million. The project will build coastal resilience in three of Tuvalu’s nine inhabited islands, managing coastal inundation risks. 2,780m of high-value vulnerable coastline will be protected, reducing the impact of increasingly intensive wave action on key infrastructure. The investments will build upon existing initiatives, using a range of measures for coastal protection including eco-system initiatives, beach nourishment, concrete and rock revetments, and sea walls. National capacity for resilient coastal management will also be developed, and the project will help to catalyse additional coastal adaptation finance from other donors.
Vietnam:
Improving the resilience of vulnerable coastal communities to climate change related impacts in Viet Nam,
$40.5 million. In order to create storm surge buffers, 4,000 hectares of mangroves will be planted and rehabilitated, which will also create sustainable ecosystem resources to support coastal livelihoods. The project will also develop systematized climate and economic risk assessments for private and public sector application in all 28 coastal provinces of Viet Nam.
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11th GCF Board meeting, November 2015
Senegal:
Increasing Resilience of Ecosystems and Communities through Restoration of the Productive Bases of Salinized Lands,
$8.2 million. Activities to reduce the impacts of salinization will be undertaken including the construction of small dams and artificial basins, large ponds, anti-salt works, and use of drip irrigation. Biological measures will include reforestation, protection of soils against erosion, mangrove restoration, promotion of biosaline agriculture, and use of natural phosphate, manures, and composts to improve soil fertility.
Peru:
Building the Resilience of Wetlands in the Province of Datem del Marañón, Peru,
$9.1 million. The project will facilitate better land-use planning and management of the region’s wetlands, while strengthening sustainable, commercial bio-businesses of non-timber forest products. It will entrust indigenous communities with the management of resources, improve their livelihoods, and empower women in the decision-making processes. The funding will support government departments in developing the land-use plan, and provide support to community-based organizations for the participation of indigenous people. The largest share of funds will support bio-businesses, including for business plans, marketing and management, equipment and supplies, and the development of solar energy for operations. The nature-based products include salted fish, smoked meat, aguaje pulp (from palm trees), and “dragon’s blood,” a croton tree resin used as an antiinflammatory and anti-viral. The project will avoid deforestation of an estimated 4,861 hectares of palm swamp and terra firma forests over a 10-year period and enhance resilience and conservation of 343,000 ha of peatlands and forest.
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