Earth Today | Adaptation Fund joins forces with FRLD

IN AN effort to respond to the urgent and complex challenges posed by climate change and its rising impacts on vulnerable populations and ecosystems, the secretariats of the Adaptation Fund (AF) and the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage (FRLD) have entered into a framework for cooperation.

Outlined in a Letter of Intent (LOI) that was signed by the heads of the two funds on January 31, the LOI emphasises the need to foster innovation and leverage collective expertise of the two funds to create scalable solutions that address both immediate and long-term impacts of climate change.

It empowers communities, ensuring that climate strategies are inclusive, equitable, promote sustainable development, and facilitate a just transition that leaves no one behind.

It is further aligned with the Paris Agreement, which affirms the need to enhance coherence and complementarity between climate funds. The secretariats will work collaboratively to find synergies with one another and common partners to leverage each other’s resources and avoid duplication of efforts.

“Our collaboration with the Adaptation Fund is perfectly in line with our board’s commitment to fostering complementary, coherence and coordination within the global climate landscape. We look forward to joining forces with the Adaptation Fund to further strengthen the responses to loss and damage in the most vulnerable nations so that no one is left behind. Through sharing experiences and knowledge, we will maximise our collective impact for a more coordinated and effective response to loss and damage” said Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, executive director of the fund for responding to loss and damage in a release from the Adaptation Fund.

SAME COIN

“Adaptation and loss and damage are two sides of the same coin. Through this cooperation with the fund for responding to Loss and Damage, we look forward to furthering our collective efforts by exploring common areas where we can work together and respond to the goals of the Paris Agreement to further coherence and complementarity and help maximise the limited resources that we have available. It sets a broad framework and is intended to evolve as we build further value in this collaboration, which ultimately benefits the vulnerable countries we serve,” noted Mikko Ollikainen, head of the Adaptation Fund.

The LOI will initially focus on addressing climate change challenges in vulnerable countries through joint efforts in five common areas, namely readiness, knowledge sharing, resource mobilisation, support to countries and advocacy.

The signing followed an initial meeting between the two funds in December in Washington, DC, which led to further discussions and agreement to develop and pursue the LOI.

“While it does not impose any legal obligations, it is aimed at expressing the desire for collaboration between the two Secretariats. The LOI will last two years with an option to extend for a subsequent two years,” the release said.

The Fund for responding to Loss and Damage was established at the COP27 to support developing countries in addressing the economic and non-economic impacts of climate change, including damage from extreme weather events and slow-onset changes. It aims to provide crucial financial support to help these nations respond to the loss and damage caused by climate change, ensuring they can recover quickly.

The AF has, since 2010, committed US$1.25 billion in grants for adaptation and resilience programmes in developing countries that are vulnerable to climate change. About half of the benefitting countries are in least developed countries or small island developing states.