By Vositha Wijenayake

NAP Expo 2016 was organised in Bonn, Germany from the 11^th to the 15^th of July 2016. The fourth in the series, it included keynotes on latest science and approaches on climate change adaptation, best practices and lessons learned, and information from relevant bodies, organizations and agencies on support for the formulation and implementation of National Adaptation Plans (NAPs). The event was attended by representatives of Parties to the UNFCCC, UN, international and bilateral organizations, agencies, experts, scientists and members of civil society.

The objectives of the NAP Expo included:

1. Providing a platform for focused interactions between all Parties and organizations on aspects that advance the formulation and implementation of NAPs;
2. Serving as a forum for sharing experience, best practices, lessons learned, gaps and needs and information on support provided and received in relation to the process to formulate and implement NAPs;
3. Offering a platform for countries to interact with providers of support, including the GCF and GEF, and bilateral agencies as means to improve access to financing for NAPs;
4. Serving as a global forum on NAPs where different organizations and bodies can conduct specialized meetings and workshops with a view to ensuring coherence among the approaches undertaken in supporting countries undertake the process.

Topics of Discussion

This year’s NAP Expo focused mainly on topics that related to how national adaptation plans could serve as the main vehicle for adaptation planning and implementation which in the long term achieve the global goal on adaptation. These included topics among others:

(a) Accessing funding from the GCF and other sources of funding for the formulation of NAPs and the subsequent implementation of the NAPs;

(b) Understanding the global goal on adaptation – examining the core elements and alignment to the NAP process

(c) Translating the global temperature limit to the national scale

(d) Examining the linkage of the global goal on adaptation with the sustainable development goals;

(e) Methodologies and tools for undertaking various assessments in the process to formulate and implement NAPs, including the implication of the global temperature target of well below 2 degrees C;

(f) Ways and means to access relevant information on available funding, best available science and knowledge on climate change.

Civil Society Role in NAPs: Formulation, Implementation and Monitoring & Evaluation

The Expo included also discussions on how different stakeholders could be involved in the NAP process in an effective manner through an inclusive and participatory process for stakeholder engagement.

Southern Voices on Adaptation co-organised a session on stakeholder engagement in the NAP process which gathered the participation of multiple actors including policy makers of countries such as Sri Lanka, Nepal, Togo who presented their experiences.

Further, the participants shared successful experiences and best practices with stakeholder engagement for a participative and inclusive NAP process, including building on stakeholder engagement efforts in the NAPA process; and early engagement of stakeholders at the concept stage to ensure good buy in for NAPs that are ‘implementable’, with all stakeholders actively engaged and ready to support implementation. They also identified the need for funding and support for effective engagement of all stakeholders, especially the most vulnerable; an enabling judicial system, education and capacity building including technical capacity building; and consideration of language/framing and communication of information so that a range of audiences will engage as the main enabling factors to motivate governments to engage with stakeholders, including vulnerable groups, private sector, academia, and CSOs to participate in NAP processes.

Among recommendations made by the participants to the Least Developed Country Expert Group (LEC) and the Adaptation Committee were: adequate financing for poor and vulnerable, ensuring that all stakeholders are engaged; and inclusion of CAF principles NAP technical guidelines, technical papers and guidance on engaging vulnerable communities and strengthening engagement as included in past LEG work programmes.​

For further and detailed information on sessions please refer to:

• http://napexpo.org/2016/
• http://unfccc.int/adaptation/items/9547.php
  

About the Author

Vositha Wijenayake is the Policy and Advocacy Co-ordinator of CANSA and, Regional Facilitator for Asia for the Southern Voices Programme. She is a lawyer by profession and has an LLM from University College London. She specialises in International Environmental Law and Human Rights Law. She has been tracking the UNFCCC negotiations since 2009 with a legal and gender focus.