Thematic evaluations of Fund performance will provide perspectives on core features of the Fund, such as the country driven and innovative character of Fund operations with a view to assessing the potential for scale up and longer-term impact. Based on extensive consultation processes the currently commissioned thematic evaluations are:

  1. The Fund’s Approach to Support Innovation for Climate Change Adaptation;
  2. Scalability in the Fund, and;
  3. Accreditation and Related Readiness in the Fund.

Other topics identified are knowledge management and learning, and the efficiency of Fund processes.

 

Thematic Evaluation on Innovation

Thematic Evaluation of the Fund’s Approach to Support Innovation for Climate Change Adaptation

The Thematic Evaluation of the Fund’s approach to support innovation for climate change adaptation has found that the Innovation Facility established by the Fund shows some promising and initial signs of impactful support to adaptation-related innovations, though overall, the progress made since its launch falls short of both its stated ambition and potential contribution.

The operationalization of the Innovation Facility has been delayed for various reasons. The evaluation identified a range of barriers (both internal and external) to realizing the Fund’s innovation-related vision and strategic objective. Such barriers are not likely to be resolved only by spending more time on the current trajectory.

Consequently, this document highlights seven areas of improvement and potential actions in which the Fund should invest to enhance the impact of its support to adaptation-related innovations.

 

Thematic Evaluation on Scalability

The Thematic Evaluation of Scalability Concepts and Practice of the Adaptation Fund assesses the experience of the Fund in applying the concept of scalability as well as examples of climate change actions that have achieved scalable impacts. It has found that there is currently no uniform definition of scaling or scalability across the Fund. However, the Second Medium-Term Strategy (MTSII) and its implementation plan have elements and proposed activities that can support the outcome of enabling scalability, including the scaling-up framework that is currently under implementation between the Fund and Green Climate Fund.  

While selected Fund-supported projects have been scaled up using multilateral funds, the number of these projects relative to the portfolio size is limited. But project elements have also been scaled up in subsequent projects supported by the Adaptation Fund and other agencies. Projects may also overlook non-financial support of scaling. Although not currently used under the Fund’s mandate and operations, non-grant instruments can further support the mobilization of adaptation finance at scale.  

On the basis of these findings, this document lays out seven recommendations in the areas of Fund Strategy and Programming on Scaling; Types of Scaling, Understanding of Scaling; Financial and Non-Financial Pathways and Instruments for Scaling, and Evaluation to encourage and enable the scaling of results. 

 

 

Thematic evaluation on Accreditation

The purpose of the evaluation is to understand if the accreditation process should be strengthened and scaled up to meet the anticipated increase in demand for Fund accreditation. More precisely, the evaluation has the following objectives:

  1. To determine if the design of the (re-)accreditation and readiness process is currently optimized to meet the Fund’s objectives;
  2. To assess the Fund’s capacity to effectively manage the expected influx of (re-) accreditation applications, and
  3. To provide recommendations on how to strengthen (re-)accreditation and related readiness processes.

The thematic evaluation will aim to cultivate lessons learned from the past and present evolution of the accreditation and reaccreditation process to identify successful pathways to its future role for the Fund. The evaluation may draw upon accreditation and readiness lessons learned from similar funds. The findings of the thematic evaluation will feed into the overall evaluation of the Fund, planned for FY24.