Nepal receives Rs 3.29 billion from GCF

 Nepal is getting Rs 3.29 billion funding from Green Climate Fund (GCF) to support climate activities.

The 26th board meeting of the GCF in Sangdo of South Korea yesterday approved Nepal’s proposal for the project ‘Improving Climate Resilience of Vulnerable Communities and Ecosystems in the Gandaki River Basin, Nepal’, according to Ministry of Forest and Environment.

“With the approval of the project, Nepal will get a financial grant of $27.4 million (over Rs 3.29 billion) for implementing the five-year project,” the ministry informed, adding that the project aims at improving the climate resilience of nearly 1.9 million people from 198,016 vulnerable households of the Gandaki River Basin. “The basin falls in 19 districts of three provinces – Bangamti Province (five districts), Gandaki Province (eleven districts) and Province 5 (three districts).”

These districts cover low-lying districts of Nawalparasi and Chitwan to the ones in the high mountains like Mustang and Manang.

The project will be implemented jointly by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) –a GCF accredited entity – and the Ministry of Forest and Environment. The IUCN will work on other components like capacity building, whereas the Forest Ministry will be the lead agency for implementing the project.

The main goal of the project is to protect the ecosystem and enhance communities’ livelihood through nature-based solutions. Watershed management, river conservation, protecting ecosystem services and improving livelihood are the major priorities. Through the project, the government is expected to mainstream the concept that river basins cannot be confined within the political boundary.

“The project is designed to improve the resilience of the communities and ecosystems in the basin area, according to the project,” the ministry claimed, adding that it is the second significant funding Nepal has received within a year from the GCF. “Last year in November, the 24th GCF board meeting had approved the first-ever funding proposal of Nepal.”

Earlier this year, Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) – the first and only GCF accredited entity – also signed a contract with GCF for seeking climate finance for Nepal’s climate actions. The AEPC received GCF accreditation in February 2019. The GCF accreditation status means the entity becomes eligible for claiming and accessing financial support of up to $50 million as its climate action partner.

Likewise, Nepal’s other climate finance support of $24 million under the Strategic Climate Fund from the World Bank was approved last month for implementing the Forest for Prosperity Project.

Two more climate change-related projects worth $7 million each from the Global Environment Facility were approved in August 2019 and April 2020. 

For the project, Building Resilient Churia Region in Nepal (BRCRN), to be implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in partnership with the Ministry of Forest and Environment, Nepal was awarded $39.3million in grant.

Nepal managed to receive the grant out of a tough and competitive process. According to the GCF, a Independent Technical Advisory Panel of the GCF sends queries regarding the project proposals which we have to respond. Then, there are also inquiries during the board meeting, before the project is approved.

For accessing funds from the GCF, a global platform that helps countries in their efforts to fight climate change by investing in low-emission and climate-resilient development, WWF Nepal and UNDP Nepal have also been working on their project proposals.

ADB, GCF commit to partnership to boost green recovery from Covid-19

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) have agreed to partner toward a ‘green recovery’ for members confronting the harsh economic impact of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
ADB president Masatsugu Asakawa met today with GCF executive director Yannick Glemarec to explore opportunities for a pathway of low-carbon and climate-resilient development for ADB members in Asia and the Pacific hit hard by the health crisis. They agreed to strengthen collaboration on nonsovereign operations while ensuring GCF’s processes are as flexible as possible to foster at-scale financing.
“ADB is committed to helping our members build a ‘green recovery’, and we stand ready to broaden our collaboration with development partners like GCF,” Asakawa said, adding that the decisions they make now will create systems, institutions, and assets, and define development directions that will last well into the future.
Under Strategy 2030, ADB will ensure that 75 per cent of its committed projects will support climate change mitigation and adaptation by 2030. Climate finance from ADB’s own resources will reach $80 billion cumulatively from 2019 to 2030. In 2019, ADB committed more than $6.5 billion in climate financing. Concessional financing from partners will also be crucial for helping ADB’s members meet their climate goals.                             
GCF has approved total funding of $473 million for 10 ADB projects – making ADB the fourth-largest accredited entity of GCF – and Asakawa and Glemarec discussed potential areas for leveraging GCF cofinancing in the near term for the benefit of ADB’s developing members.
ADB’s support for developing members to cope with, and recover from, the impact of Covid-19 includes an enhanced support package of $20 billion, announced on April 13.
ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members, 49 from the region.

Nepal and Green Climate Fund, FAO join hands

The Green Climate Fund (GCF) under Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO) have agreed to provide financial grant assistance of $39.3 million (approximately Rs 4,688.2 million) for the implementation of Building a Resilient Churia Region in Nepal (BRCRN) project. The grant assistance will be mobilised through the budgetary system of the government, according to a press note issued by the Finance Minister.
The project aims to enhance the climate-resilience of ecosystems and vulnerable communities in Nepal´s Churia region through integrated Sustainable Natural Resource Management (SNRM) approaches, it reads, adding that the project will cover 26 river systems of the province No 1, 2 and Bagmati provinces and aims to benefit approximately 200,681 households. “This project will benefit to women, indigenous people, dalit and vulnerable people of that area.”
The main components of the project are scaling up climate-resilient Sustainable Natural Resource Management (SNRM), strengthening institutions and planning for climate-resilient SNRM and improving knowledge, awareness and local capacity for climate-resilient SNRM, it further reads. “The project will be implemented for a period of six-and-a-half years.”
The Ministry of Forest and Environment will be the implementing agency for this project.
This is the first time that GCF fund is being utilised by the government through its budgetary system. The agreement was signed by joint secretary at the Finance Ministry Shreekrishna Nepal on behalf of the government and representative of FAO in Nepal and Bhutan Somsak Pipoppinyo, on behalf of GCF/FAO.
The government has expressed its sincere appreciation to the GCF/FAO for this assistance and its continued support to Nepal.

Nepal receives $39.3 million grant from Green Climate Fund

Nepal received its first significant funding from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for a project aimed at helping the country adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change.
The 24th board meeting of the fund in Sangdo, South Korea today has approved the first funding proposal of Nepal, one of the most vulnerable countries to the impacts of the climate crisis. “The meeting has given the green signal to awarding a $39.3million grant to the project titled ‘Building Resilient Churia Region in Nepal (BRCRN),” according to a press note. “The current funding has been approved for the project which will be implemented on the ground to help climate-vulnerable communities and ecology to adapt.”
The project – that will last for 7 years – will be implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), in partnership with the Ministry of Forest and Environment, in the fragile Chure range, which has faced massive degradation in the past.
The approved project – a multi-dimensional one as it not only talks about the resilience of vulnerable communities and conservation but also early warning systems – will help locals in adapting to the changing climate as the Chure range is a significant zone for the people living in the low-lying districts in Terai for its services like water and forest.
As a poor and mountainous country, at the higher risk of climate change and induced disasters, Nepal looks up to international support for climate actions – adaptation and mitigation – in order to gain resilience, and also to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Green Climate Fund (GCF) was set up in 2010 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to support the efforts of developing countries to respond to the challenge of climate change.
According an NGO working for sustainable development and environmental justice in Nepal Prakriti Resources Centre, this is the first-ever that the GCF has extended such substantial funding to the country for climate change-related projects. ““In the past, we have achieved some funds from the GCF, but this is the first time the fund has approved Nepal’s funding proposal,” the NGO informed, adding that it is an important achievement for Nepal. Prakriti Resources Centre has been involved in international climate negotiations for years.
Nepal had also received fundings from the GCF twice in the past. First in In 2016, Nepal received a grant of $2.9 million – via the United Nations Environment Programme for preparing its National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) – under the GCF's Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme. The programme to enhance country ownership and access to the funds was also known as Asia’s first GCF-financed project at the time.
Secondly, Nepal received another funding from GCF’s Readiness Support that provides up to $1 million per country per year for strengthening the country’s institutional capacities to access the funds. “Approval of funding for the project for climate actions is a positive development for a climate change vulnerable country like Nepal,” according to GCF Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme under the Finance Ministry.
Nepal is currently preparing at least three projects for accessing grants from the GCF. WWF Nepal has been working on a project proposal which will be based in West Seti area. Likewise, the UNDP Nepal is working on a project proposal to safeguard lives and livelihoods against the project to protect lives and livelihoods against flood and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) targeting finance from the Green Climate Fund.
International Union for Conservation of Nature-Nepal is also developing a project proposal for building ecosystem and community resilience which is likely to be submitted for approval in coming March, the first one to go for approval among others in the pipeline.
However, these all are international agencies-supported projects. Accreditation of Alternative Energy Promotion Centre, one of the four national entities nominated by the government in February to gain the GCF status, in February has given new hopes for the country that the government bodies can also apply for similar grants for climate actions projects.
The GCF accreditation to the AEPC means it can access up to $50million in GCF funds for low-carbon, climate-resilient development projects and programmes in Nepal.

AEPC can access $50 million in GCF funds

Alternative Energy Promotion Center (AEPC) has been awarded a $50 million grant from Green Climate Fund (GCF) for running low-carbon climate-resilient development projects and programs in Nepal.
The board meeting of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) – held on February 26-28 in South Korea – has approved the accreditation application for Nepal’s first national direct access entity, AEPC.
"This outstanding milestone for climate finance in Nepal is the result of the strong commitment of AEPC – the leadership of Nepal’s National Designated Authority (NDA) – to the fund, reads a press release issued by the Finance Ministry.
The programme is funded by the Government of Germany (BMU) and jointly implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
"This is a landmark moment for Nepal whereby a federal government institution has been accredited for direct access with the largest global fund on climate change," according to joint secretary at the Finance Ministry Shreekrishna Nepal, who is also NDA focal person at the ministry.
"This will help Nepal access and mobilise resources for low-emission and climate resilient projects,” he added.
"Despite the rigorous and stringent process, the centre was able to gain accreditation status with GCF," executive director of AEPC Madhusudan Adhikari said, adding that they are committed to accessing resources as per adaptation and mitigation priorities, aligned with our country’s national development strategies.
The government, through the NDA, had nominated four national entities through open competitive process by inviting applications to gain accreditation status. At the moment, National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), Nepal Investment Bank and Town Development Fund are still in the pipeline for accreditation with GCF.
The GCF will help Nepal access the necessary finance to address climate change issues in the country, according to resident representative of UNDP Nepal Renaud Meyer.

ADB, GCF sign agreement to scale Up Climate Finance delivery in Asia

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) today signed an Accreditation Master Agreement (AMA) that will allow ADB to access and administer GCF funds and scale up the bank’s climate financing to its developing member countries.
The agreed AMA – a framework agreement detailing the overarching rights and obligations of an accredited entity and GCF – will enable ADB to access a new funding source to further increase its climate mitigation and adaptation efforts in Asia and the Pacific. “The Accreditation Master Agreement between the GCF and ADB will open the way to deeper collaboration between our institutions,” said ADB General Counsel Christopher Stephens. "Working together with the GCF, we will build a robust pipeline of climate projects that support the development and climate objectives of our developing member countries.”
GCF works exclusively with accredited entities to support climate mitigation and adaptation projects and programs. Today’s signing of the AMA is the conclusion of ADB’s accreditation process – approved in March 2015 – that enables ADB to apply for GCF funding for all sizes of projects, as well as all environmental and social risk categories. These funds would be in addition to ADB’s own commitment of providing climate financing of $6 billion per year by 2020.
“As the dynamo of global economic growth, with Asia Pacific continuing to record the world’s strongest growth, this region has a key role to play in tackling climate change,” said Acting GCF General Counsel Raul Herrera. “The vital importance of Asia in meeting the climate challenge, along with GCF’s mandate to pursue transformative low-emission and climate-resilient development across the planet, means a shared strategic approach between GCF and ADB in this area is essential.”
GCF also commended ADB for highlighting in its own study how sensitive the Asia and Pacific region is to climate change. 'A Region at Risk-The Human Dimensions of Climate Change in Asia and the Pacific', an ADB report released in July, indicates climate change could diminish the major achievements made during the past few decades in lifting large numbers of people living in the region out of poverty.
Access to GCF financing starts with a submission by ADB of a funding proposal, followed by its review and approval by the GCF board. GCF financing may include a combination of public and private sector initiatives and provide a range of financing instruments such as grants, loans – including concessional loans – equity, and risk mitigation instruments such as guarantees.
In November 2015, GCF approved a first $31 million climate adaptation grant for ADB’s Fiji Urban Water Supply and Wastewater Management Project that will benefit a third of the country’s population of 860,000. The grant to Fiji was among the first group of projects approved by the GCF Board. GCF has also approved a $12 million grant for the Cook Islands Renewable Energy project along with a $5 million grant for a regional technical assistance to seven Pacific Island countries to transition to renewable energy.
ADB’s current GCF accreditation is valid until March 2020, subject to reaccreditation every 5 years.
GCF, based in Songdo, is a global fund created to support the efforts of developing countries to respond to the challenge of climate change. It was established in 2010 by 194 governments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries and catalyze a flow of climate finance to invest in low-emission and climate-resilient development. As of June 2017, 42 countries and one city have signed contribution agreements with GCF worth $10.1 billion out of the $10.3 billion pledged.
ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, ADB is celebrating 50 years of development partnership in the region. It is owned by 67 members; 48 from the region. In 2016, ADB assistance totaled $31.7 billion, including $14 billion in cofinancing. 

International agency chiefs call for attention to commodity price hike

Volatile and rising prices for basic farm produce, petroleum and raw industrial materials are a cause for concern, especially for the poor of the world, and steps are needed to calm historically turbulent commodities markets, the heads of several international agencies said.
UNCTAD’s second Global Commodities Forum (GCF) opened with addresses by the chiefs of four international agencies and the deputy executive secretary of a fifth. They said the theme of this year’s forum – 'Volatility in international commodity markets' – is timely as prices for such basic products are edging upward towards the limits reached during the 2008 food and energy crises.
UNCTAD secretary-general Supachai Panitchpakdi said that there are serious concerns about the way in which commodity markets have been evolving in recent years. "Since mid-2010, commodities have, for the second time in three years, been experiencing extremely high price volatility," he said, warning of 'speculative distortions that complicate the economic management of commodities production and trade,' and noted that natural events such as floods in Pakistan and fires in the Russian Federation, events which may be linked to global warming, have spurred upward pressure on prices for agricultural goods such as wheat and cotton.
Copper prices, he said, have risen by 35 per cent since the summer of 2010. These forces come on top of basic increases in demand fuelled by the fast-growing economies of such countries as China. "Such volatility has huge negative impacts on vulnerable groups, such as low-income households in developing countries, for whom food expenditure can account for up to 80 per cent of household budgets,” he added.
Panitchpakdi urged greater efforts to 'identify the policy levers that can rein in excessive volatility and maintain prices within a reasonable band'. He also urged commodity-dependent developing countries to continue efforts to diversify their economies so that they are less vulnerable to shifts in commodities markets.
Pascal Lamy, director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), cautioned that '2011 will see the prices of most commodities rise, as the rise in global GDP bolsters demand, led by emerging economies. Global GDP is set to grow by four per cent this year.'" Over 70 per cent of the growth will come from commodity-intensive emerging markets. China, India and Latin America, in particular, will be acting as a ‘pull’ for global commodities," Lamy said, adding that that 'volatility is at its worst in tight and closed markets. It eases in open and, hence, deeper markets.
"Completion of the Doha Round of global trade talks could calm the picture, he added. "In fact, were this round to be completed, least developed countries (LDCs) would get almost entirely duty-free, quota-free access to developed world markets."
Hamadoun I Touré, secretary-general of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), termed 'the timing of the forum especially important. "For billions of people, the cost of meeting daily food needs takes up a 'significant proportion' of family incomes," he said. "We must therefore work together to ensure the long-term sustainability of the production and marketing of commodities.
"Careful monitoring of these markets is vital, Touré said, and to that end ITU and UNCTAD had signed last year an agreement to set up and run a Natural Resources Information Exchange for African countries.
Ali Mchumo, managing director of the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC), said, "The recent developments in the commodity markets have been a subject of intense attention and discussion by the members of the CFC and all the stakeholders of commodities with whom we interact daily in our projects.
"The challenge, Mchumo said, is to find 'practical workable solutions to the perennial problems of the commodity economy.' He added, "There’s not much disagreement in the international community that commodity dependence is a development problem."
Andrey Vasilyev, deputy executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), said the world’s advanced economies are recovering only slowly from the global recession, with unemployment distressingly high.
Recent rises in commodity prices pose the possibility of contributing unwelcome inflationary pressure, and it is important to limit such prices to the forces of “supply and demand alone," Vasilyev said, and to reduce any influence coming from financial speculation in such goods.
UNECE’s internationally agreed standards for a number of agricultural products are applied in many cases worldwide and help to reduce trade barriers and improve the prospects of farmers in developing countries, he noted.
Opening the session was Luis Manuel Piantini Munnigh, president of UNCTAD’s Trade and Development Board, who told the gathering that the two-day conference is part of 'a search for better solutions for the chronic problems of the commodities economy'.
He said it is important 'to address these chronic problems in a manner that is both systemic and systematic, seeking the best ways to solve them'. The GCF will continue over the next two days with a series of discussions in three parallel 'streams'.
Topics to be covered include 'The state of energy markets: lower volatility and a new price zone for hydrocarbons?'