About

The Scaling up Climate Ambition on Land Use and Agriculture through NDCs and NAPs (SCALA) programme supports countries to enhance climate action in land use and agriculture, together with partners. Using countries’ nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and/or National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) as entry points, SCALA identifies pathways for implementing climate actions with the potential to trigger transformative systems change. It emphasises private sector engagement as well as gender-responsive and inclusive approaches to planning and implementation that benefit the most vulnerable natural resource-dependent communities.

The 12 core SCALA countries are: Argentina, Cambodia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Mongolia, Nepal, Senegal, Thailand, and Uganda. Additional countries are supported through a technical assistance facility.

Funded by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), the 20 million euro programme is implemented through a joint effort between FAO and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) from 2021-2025. It builds on lessons learned from the Integrating Agriculture in National Adaptation Plans (NAP-Ag) Programme, where FAO and UNDP played a catalytic role in the paradigm shift for NAPs, establishing partnerships between sectors for adaptation planning and budgeting within governments from 2015-2020. 

The SCALA Programme contributes to the UNDP Climate Promise as it enters its second phase (2022-2026) of providing comprehensive support on NDC implementation in 120 countries and FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative while working closely with a range of other partners. In parallel to supporting countries to develop the capacity to own and lead the process to meet targets set out in their climate commitments under the Paris Agreement, SCALA activities also contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda.