08 May 2018 - Under the theme “Advancing National Adaptation Plans (NAPs)”, the NAP Expo invited countries, organisations and other stakeholders to foster partnerships and exchange experiences on how to formulate and implement NAPs. The event, which was organized by the UNFCCC Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Expert Group (LEG) in collaboration with various organizations, brought together more than 170 participants from all over the globe in Sharm el Sheikh, 4 to 6 April. 

The global team of the joint UNDP-FAO Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans Programme (NAP-Ag) and several of its 11 partner countries participated actively throughout the three days and contributed to several sessions.

ACCESSING FUNDING FROM THE GCF READINESS PROGRAMME TO FORMULATE NAPS/SUPPORT OTHER ADAPTATION PLANNING PROCESSES
Countries have been challenged to adopt a cross-sectoral approach when developing their NAPs. In a group session facilitated by FAO in Spanish, Colombia presented the formulation and implementation of its NAPs from national to subnational level. Discussion on accessing climate finance, particularly the GCF readiness programme, was a cornerstone of this year´s NAP Expo. A three-hour session on financing adaptation was held by the LEG/GCF, and discussions continued on day 3, led by the Adaptation Committee (AC).

Ms. Cecilia Silva, AC, presented the Committee's information paper,which provides an analysis of country experiences in accessing the readiness programme, in particular for NAPs.

Also present was Mr. Jason Spensley from the GCF Secretariat, who said "We are prioritising direct access to the readiness programme for the formulation of NAPs through the selection of national delivery partners." He also presented the GCF review criteria for assessing proposals they receive.

Several countries shared their experiences in accessing the readiness programme, including Bangladesh, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, and Viet Nam. Country representatives appreciated the country-driven approach promoted by the GCF, but some cautioned that access to funding should be facilitated for all countries, regardless of their national capacity.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE NAPAS
The FAO Representative in Egypt, Hussein Gadain, presented on lessons learned from NAPAs on agriculture and food security, highlighting

• 98 percent of developing countries included adaptation in the agricultural sectors in their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), now NDCs. Of the 47 NAPAs prepared, all of them highlighted food security and agriculture as climate vulnerable sectors;
• The shift from NAPA to NAP advocates to further integrate agriculture and food security in NAPs as instrument for implementing NDCs and achieving SDG2 ‘’Zero Hunger’’ and SDG 13 ‘’Climate Action’’

LONG-TERM ADAPTATION PLANNING AND TRANSFORMATION
FAO presented on the NAP-Ag guidelines and how they can guide countries address agriculture in the formulation and implementation of NAPs and how through NAPs long-term adaptation and transformation can be achieved.

• The main motivations for transformative adaptation are chronic adaptation deficit; public policies ineffective at changing vulnerability status of agriculture; protection of rural livelihoods with sustainable productivity and income growth.
• It is critical to know how and when the production system challenges are such that a transformation is needed.

COMMUNICATION STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE NAPS
This session focused on how strategic communications can support the process to formulate and implement NAPs. The interactive session looked at examples of communications strategies related to climate change adaptation, as well as approaches to identifying target audiences, developing key messages, and selecting appropriate communications channels. An overview presentation was provided by the from the NAP Global Network, country case studies from Jamaica and Uruguay, and a group activity facilitated by FAO/NAP-Ag, the Global Climate Change Alliance+, the Network, and members of the LEG.

 
INTEGRATING GENDER CONSIDERATIONS IN THE PROCESS TO FORMULATE AND IMPLEMENT NAPS
The session on Gender in NAPs, organised by the NAP-Global Network, NAP-Ag and NAP-GSP, underscored yet again the importance of integrating gender considerations into adaptation planning.  Two of the NAP-Ag countries, Nepal and Uruguay, shared their experiences.

MONITORING, EVALUATION AND LEARNING
Countries shared their experiences of establishing robust M&E systems for their NAP process. For example, Thailand has defined “resilience” criteria, developed indicators, and a participatory approach, starting from the local level, to measure progress in responding to these criteria. The NAP-Ag highlighted the need to strengthen M&E approaches in the agricultural sector. The programme is currently developing a training package on the subject and presented a new flyer on Advancing on monitoring and evaluation for adaptation in the agriculture sectors.

 All in all, the sessions provided the participants the chance to discuss linkages between NAPs, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, NDCs to the Paris Agreement, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction several times during the three days.

On this note, the LEG presented the iFrame, an approach that could help countries harmonise the way they align the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with national goals and adaptation activities. As a next step, the UNFCCC will update the NAP Technical Guidelines to reflect the iFrame approach.  

USING NAPS TO INFORM THE NEXT GENERATION OF CLIMATE PROJECTS
“Differences in cultures, education, knowledge, availability and affordability of technology, and other factors means that a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach is likely to fail. Flexible and adaptive action plans should be sought,” said Ms. Kristie Ebi, an IPCC expert and Professor at the University of Washington.

Other participants also recognised the need for well-designed adaptation measures, acknowledging that multiple political, social, economic, technological and human factors determine their effectiveness.

NEXT STEPS
Take-home messages conveyed by the final keynote speakers left no place for complacency, and encouraged increased efforts across the board on NAP implementation.

"We need solutions from all nations, all levels of governments, all businesses and corporations, and individuals", said Ms. Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC.