HOLISTIC CLIMATE ADAPTATION SOLUTIONS CALLED FOR AT COP 28 SIDE EVENT

There is a tendency to first mobilize climate adaptation finance, then to think about how to support the governments to have climate adaptation policies, and then to worry about the solutions on the ground. Instead, we need to adopt a holistic approach to climate change adaptation solutions, explained Dr S. Nanthikesan, Lead Evaluation Officer of the Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE), during a side event at the UN Climate Change Conference, COP 28.

“We are thinking about climate change adaptation by looking at finance, national policies and capacities, and where farmers are going to produce agricultural solutions, as silos. These cannot be separated like this - they have to be integrated. You have to make sure that the chain is completely analysed and that you are able to produce a solid argument for why you need that dollar and how you are spending it at the ground level”, Dr Nanthikesan underscored.

Titled ‘advancing adaptation and climate resilience through evidence and opportunities lenses’, the COP 28 side event took place in Dubai, on 3 December 2023, co-organized by the Inter-American Development Bank and the German Institute for Development Evaluation (DEval). The event discussed the fact that increasing funding and supporting efforts to achieve the global goal of adaptation requires evidence, solutions, alliances, and good practices of international climate institutions. In particular, the event presented research and evaluation findings regarding progress, challenges and gaps as well as opportunities, solutions and good practices of effective and just climate finance as well as loss and damage action. In addition to Dr Nanthikesan, panellists included Andreas Reumann, Head of the Independent Evaluation Unit at the Green Climate Fund; Dr Sven Harten, Deputy Director at DEval; and Debbie Menezes, Chair of the Technical Evaluation Reference Group of the Adaptation Fund.

“In terms of solutions that we have, good is no longer good enough. We have come to a stage where a ‘doing no harm’ approach is not going to solve the problem. We have to focus on restoring the damaged ecosystems. In this context, the urgent question is how do we convince those governments that are reluctant to make investments in adaptation solutions that ‘do no harm’ to now invest in restoring. That will be a challenge that needs international collaboration to address”, said Dr Nanthikesan.

These considerations stem from the fact that national commitment and capacities for promoting climate adaptation are uneven. In an era of debt distress, pandemic and wars, it is challenging for governments to prioritize sound climate investments that are perceived to take resources away from poverty reduction. Often, they have to choose between saving people from immediate hunger and disease today, versus saving them from risks that may materialize in the future. Moreover, governments have to deal with multiple priorities, and recognizing climate adaptation as one of the key priorities can be a challenge. In this context, how can evaluations be useful to convince governments of the need for adaptation investments?

“To convince the governments, you have to show that your programme can not only solve the climate resilience problem, whilst addressing the environmental resilience problem, but also give economic resilience. Resilience in all three dimensions - economic, climate and environment - needs to be achieved together in order to have win-win solutions. There are concrete examples of this, which we encountered in our thematic evaluation of IFAD’s support for smallholder farmers’ adaptation to climate change”, noted Dr Nanthikesan.

Moreover, it’s not only the commitment of the governments that needs to be focused upon, but also that of the smallholder farmers. There may be brilliant solutions at hand, but why should smallholder farmers uptake them when there are financial risks involved? To best change behaviours, IOE’s climate change adaptation evaluation found peer-to-peer learning and strong agricultural extension services to be effective in convincing smallholders of the benefits of the proposed initiatives. Naturally, all these initiatives require funding. The United Nations Environment Programme estimated that, globally, climate adaptation would require between US$ 140 and US$ 360 billion annually to succeed. At the present time, there are approximately US$ 50 billion available, at most.

In addition to this side event, IFAD’s participation at COP28 featured a series of other events that addressed key aspects of climate change and sustainable agriculture. Events included shedding light on global climate finance challenges, launching the Africa Rural Climate Adaptation Financing Mechanism (ARCAFIM), and addressing climate vulnerability in Small Island Development States. IFAD collaborated with civil society to investigate innovative strategies for a sustainable food future, and explored the impact of climate change on local cuisines with Senegalese chef Pierre Thiam. The series concluded with discussions on scaling nature-based solutions, ensuring sustainable food systems, and exploring digital innovations for climate-resilient agriculture.