The final day of the global capacity development workshop on Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans focused on enhancing working planning with the country teams for achieving results in 2016 to 2018 through the implementation of effective work plans and to set up possible peer-exchanges between countries.

Also, FAO experts shared perspectives on how to address key issues regarding the integration of the agriculture sectors, including crops and livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture to the cross cutting NAP process that is laid out in the LDC Expert Group (LEG) NAP Technical Guidelines. The objectives of the NAP Technical guidelines are to guide national level decision-makers in developing a national adaptation plan (NAP) process for the medium to long term. Country participants mentioned these guidelines have been useful in providing a clear roadmap, a checklist and impetus for planning, implementation, review and improvement.

To complement these guidelines with a more in-depth view on agriculture and food security FAO is drafting the Agriculture Supplement supported by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI). The agriculture supplement aims to address and integrate key agricultural issues in the NAPs process. Countries provided feedback on the guidance they require to ensure the agriculture sectors are included in the NAP Process and met with experts on livestock, forestry and fisheries to discuss the steps on how to integrate the agricultural sectors in national level planning. One example are the Voluntary guidelines to support the integration of genetic diversity into national climate change adaptation planning developed by FAO and the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.  A more general working group on integrating climate change adaptation in sectors also took place to discuss the importance of mainstreaming and what it actually entails. This exercise was extracted from the GIZ-UNDP-UNITAR country-level training package on NAP developed and tested through the UNDP-UNEP National Adaptation Plans Global Support Programme.

During the last session, country teams consisting of: one representative of the agriculture and the environment ministry and one UNDP and FAO expert worked together on enhancing the programme’s work plans and deliverables for 2016. Each country team presented their key milestones to the others and it was agreed that countries wanted to have an open exchange with other country teams to follow the progress in other countries on a continued basis. Countries also identified overlapping interests and common areas of exchange between peer countries to foster South-South exchanges.

Julia Wolf, the FAO Natural Resource Officer leading the programme in FAO, explained “2016 and 2017 are crucial for countries to make progress in design and implementation on NAPs and for our programme to ensure the integration of agriculture and food security. Let me remind you that the parties are invited to report on NAP progress to UNFCCC by 1 February 2018”.  Rohini Kohli, UNDP Lead Technical Specialist for the NAP portfolio stated: “This capacity development meeting has initiated a unique working level collaboration between ministries of environment and agriculture that will continue throughout the duration of the programme and beyond. It provides a huge opportunity to address risk management in the programme countries in practical ways, and we hope to leverage more partnerships and resources through this initiative.”

In the workshop closing remarks, Lea Herberg, representing the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) highlighted “this enriching workshop covered interesting technical inputs on the different agricultural sub-sectors, on climate change issues, contributing to the implementation of NAPs and the integration of EbA in the NAP process. I could see the countries being very engaged in the work and the discussions on how to fast track the implementation”.

As a follow up to the workshop, national level meetings will be held throughout 2016 in each of the partner countries to move ahead on national programme activities and confirm the milestones that were mapped out during the workshop. As next milestone to report progress to the public will be the NAP expo hosted by UNFCCC in July 2016.

For further information on the workshop, see:
www.fao.org/in-action/naps/news/events/global-capacity-development-workshop-2016

www.fao.org/in-action/naps
www.adaptation-undp.org/naps-agriculture