Adaptation Fund ‘Shall Serve the Paris Agreement’, As CMP 13 Parties Formally Recognize its Concrete Actions to Most Vulnerable

Adaptation Fund Also Breaks Single-Year Record with US$ 93.3M in New Pledges

Bonn, Germany (November 18, 2017) — The Adaptation Fund accomplished great results in the progress towards its longstanding goal to formally serve the landmark Paris Agreement, when near the conclusion of the COP 23 UN Climate Conference in Bonn, member countries of the Kyoto Protocol decided that the Fund “shall serve” the Paris Agreement in a milestone decision for the Fund and the vulnerable countries it serves.

The decision moves the Fund forward in its roadmap to formally serve the Paris Agreement after the 21st Session of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 21) in Paris in 2015 decided the Fund ‘may’ serve the Agreement. At COP 22 in Morocco last year, Parties went a step further, deciding the Fund ‘should’ serve it, pending final decisions on its governance and safeguards to be taken by 2018.

However, in the inclusive ‘Bula’ spirit of raising awareness for the most vulnerable and the urgency to accelerate climate action championed by the COP 23 Presidency of Fiji, the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 13) advanced the issue now. Late into the night of November 17 on the final day of the conference, CMP 13 recognized the record demand for the Fund and its concrete work to vulnerable countries and decided the Adaptation Fund shall serve the Paris Agreement. It further decided that further decisions would be taken in December 2018 by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA) based on preparatory work by Parties on areas such as governance and institutional arrangements, safeguards and operating modalities. In its decision, the CMP noted that progress on such preparatory had already taken place. CMP will also decide later whether the Fund shall serve the Agreement exclusively under CMA following a recommendation to be provided by CMA in 2019. The decision also recognized that the Fund should continue to contribute to an enhanced, efficient and coherent climate finance architecture.

“This marks excellent progress in the global battle against climate change, and will benefit many more vulnerable communities in developing countries that the Adaptation Fund serves,” said Victor Viñas, of the Dominican Republic, Vice-Chair of the Adaptation Fund Board.

The decision helps affirm and formalize what the Fund has already been doing to operationalize the goals of the Paris Agreement, which calls for countries to accelerate global action on climate change for the most vulnerable through a balance of adaptation and mitigation. Through its concrete, localized adaptation projects to the most vulnerable countries and its pioneering Direct Access modality that empowers countries to build national capacities to adapt to climate change, the Fund has already been contributing to these goals.

Since it was first created through a decision by COP 7 in 2001 in Morocco, and launched after being operationalized and its Board and structure established in follow-up decisions at CMP 3 in 2007 in Indonesia, Friday’s decision places the Fund on firm ground to formally serve the Paris Agreement.

“The decision of CMP that the Adaptation Fund shall serve the Paris Agreement helps resolve an essential issue in the transition period from the Kyoto Protocol to the new international climate architecture: it ensures institutional stability for the Fund as a multilateral fund to serve the most vulnerable communities,” said Michael Kracht, Chair of the Adaptation Fund Board. “The Fund now can continue delivering localized, concrete adaptation projects in developing countries. Through a country-led, inclusive stakeholder engagement process, many projects are breaking ground in adaptation and producing models that can be scaled up by others. The Fund is in higher demand than ever.”

Just this year alone reflecting the rising seas, increasing floods, droughts and intense storms occurring throughout the world, the Fund received a record of 54 project proposals valued at US$ 350 million and decided to fund more than US$ 104 million in new proposals. It currently funds 70 concrete adaptation projects in vulnerable communities of 58 developing countries, benefiting nearly 5.5 million direct beneficiaries.

ABOUT the ADAPTATION FUND

Since 2010, the Adaptation Fund has committed US$ 462 million to support 73 countries, with nearly 5.5 million direct beneficiaries.

Communications: Matthew Pueschel, mpueschel@adaptation-fund.org or +1-202-473-6743

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