Aligning for Impact: Programmatic Approaches to Adaptation Finance through NAPs and NDCs 3.0

The global adaptation finance landscape must urgently transform to meet the growing needs of climate-vulnerable nations, particularly Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). These countries face existential risks from climate change, having contributed the least to its causes, and often struggle to access, manage, and disburse sufficient and timely climate finance to take action. Traditional project-based financing models have proven too fragmented and inefficient, resulting in delays, high transaction costs, and a mismatch between disbursed funds and national adaptation priorities. There is growing consensus that programmatic approaches—long-term, integrated financing mechanisms—are essential for scaling up climate resilience in these vulnerable nations. There is a critical need to capture lessons from these approaches while recognising the context-specific nature of adaptation finance.

This event, co-organized by the Champions Group on Adaptation Finance and the Climate and Development Ministerial (C&DM), will explore high-level and technical advancements toward shifting to programmatic adaptation finance delivery. Drawing on evidence and successful models like LIFE-AR and the Bridgetown Initiative 3.0, discussions will highlight how LDCs and SIDS are leading impactful adaptation strategies. To make programmatic approaches more actionable, the discussion will emphasize their integration into the next generation of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). Additionally, the event will feature the launch of C&DM's landscape mapping initiative, which aims to catalog current adaptation finance initiatives, identify gaps and overlaps, and uncover new opportunities for collaboration.

The event will feature a high-level panel comprising senior technical speakers representing donor countries, LDCs, SIDS, International Financial Institutions (IFIs), and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).