As the frequency and impacts of climate events increase, the demand for local-level adaptation becomes urgent. The adaptation finance received by developing and least developed countries is estimated at less than USD 25 billion per year, which is far less than the required USD 215 billion per year. Further, the evidence indicates that less than 10% of global climate finance reaches the local level. Local communities lack the institutional capacity, financial tools, and knowledge networks necessary to secure adaptation finance. Complex application procedures, limited funding availability, and unequal distribution exacerbate the challenge. This highlights the need for developing innovative approaches to enhance access to adaptation finance at the local level in the Global South. Locally-Led Adaptation (LLA) can play a crucial role in addressing this challenge at scale. It addresses structural inequalities by ensuring that decision-making authority lies with sub-national and local actors and by further fostering partnerships with funders, government, and multilateral agencies. LLA has the potential to act as a catalyst for attracting the funding needed to bridge the widening adaptation finance gap. Members of the G20 must leverage international cooperation to strengthen LLA across climate-risk-prone regions and promote inclusive climate action at scale in the Global South. This policy brief provides recommendations to enhance access to adaptation finance, drawing on existing LLA actions implemented in various developing countries. We propose a five-pronged strategy focused on innovative adaptation finance mechanisms, institutional strengthening, and social inclusion to empower local communities to access climate finance effectively. By uplifting localised priorities rather than one-size-fits-all external interventions, the proposed integrated approach aims to support G20 countries in unlocking the transformative potential of climate finance to chart locally-led regenerative futures.
See the full paper here https://www.global-solutions-initiative.org/person/dr-bapon-fakhruddin/
