Inter-Regional Technical Support component

The Inter-Regional Technical Support component will provide a package of support to the country teams to link the country projects together. All countries will then benefit from and contribute to a much wider knowledge base based on best practices. The platform is for both UNDP geographic regions involved: sub-Saharan Africa, led by the Regional Bureau for Africa (RBA), and the Arab States bordering the Mediterranean Sea, led by the Regional Bureau for Arab States (RBAS). This technical support will be a key mechanism to deliver expertise, training, and tools to countries as they develop and implement their country projects. The expected outputs to be produced under this component are parallel to, and in support of, the main outcomes of the overall programme described under Objectives:

Output 1.  Access to and use of climate data and information facilitated to support national planning and decision-making

UNDP will provide assistance to countries to access, collect and analyze best available data on climate change and its impacts. Cooperation with the UN Environment Programme, World Meteorological Organization and other relevant monitoring and assessment centres of expertise will be established. The end goal is to facilitate rational decision-making and planning processes in spite of a certain degree of future uncertainty.

Output 2.  Support provided to the develop country-specific institutions and leadership

Countries will receive assistance according to their specific circumstances and existing institutions. The Inter-Regional Technical component will support the implementation/Strengthening of institutional mechanisms needed to promote coordination on climate change risks and opportunities across multiple sectors. Lessons will be shared among national teams and UNDP will provide technical advice, policy and operational support, and tools and resources. Finally, capacities will be developed to design and implement climate change adaptation activities.

Output 3.  Best practices, experiences and technologies on climate-resilient policies in priority sectors shared among countries

This component will reach across the different parts of the continent involved to identify best practices of specific sectors and adaptive capacity activity, and exchange these with other countries facing similar challenges. The Inter-Regional Technical component will compile, review, and integrate existing adaptation tools, methods and procedures and develop new ones as required so that the best possible tools and methods are available at the country level. This will include technical expertise from other regional and global networks.

Output 4.  Innovative financing options identified and key partnerships facilitated

A key aspect will relate to financial tools and mechanisms, including knowledge on how to access and integrate different sources of climate change funding for specific national objectives. The Inter-Regional Technical component will actively investigate and share knowledge on financing options available to support climate risks management and will help countries establish partnerships with relevant regional and international organizations. The programme will develop strategies to engage the private sector and leverage additional financing for adaptation.

Output 5.  Region-wide knowledge and learning mechanism established

Knowledge and awareness of adaptation will be facilitated across participating countries and regions. These mechanism will provide targeted support to address knowledge and awareness needs of specific groups of stakeholders, for example decision-makers, sector experts, private sector, and local communities. Existing global and regional networks will be used, including the Adaptation Learning Mechanism and UNDP’s ‘ee-net’.