The Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility’s 9th Annual Board Meeting kicks off in Brussels on Wednesday, bringing together over 100 participants to define shared adaptation priorities for 32 least developed and developing countries over the coming year as they respond to impacts of climate change using the LoCAL Facility. Some 18 LoCAL ministers are scheduled to meet on Thursday to elevate joint ambitions on adaptation and climate finance at the international level.

This year’s LoCAL Board on 11 May 2022 is the largest ever event of its kind and an opportunity to welcome newest members Guinea Bissau and Tunisia to the now 32-strong LoCAL community of countries that are highly impacted by climate change but have limited means to tackle the crisis.

“The LoCAL Community is growing every year, which is a reflection of the urgent need among Least Developed Countries, African nations, Small Island Developing States and other climate-vulnerable developing countries for an effective mechanism to deliver much-needed climate finance to the communities that need it,” said Preeti Sinha, Executive Secretary of the UN Capital Development Fund, which is hosting the meetings in the Belgian capital.

“Our partner countries tell us that the LoCAL Facility is an effective solution for climate finance delivery that uses and strengthens government systems while boosting adaptation at the community level and I trust that this meeting will be an opportunity for the LoCAL community to advance our shared goals,” said Ms Sinha, who is scheduled to open the high-level Ministerial Meeting on Thursday 12th May in the Belgian capital.

While climate change is a global problem, its impacts are not felt evenly. The developing and least developed countries that have contributed least to the climate crisis are among the most impacted by rising seas and temperatures, unpredictable rain fall and extreme weather events, to name but a few. Economic constraints mean these countries also have the most limited resources to adapt to the crisis. The daily reality of global climate change is experienced most acutely at the local level, decimating livelihoods and eroding hard-won progress towards achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The LoCAL Facility recognises the local and sub-national dimensions of adaptation needs and supports climate change-vulnerable countries’ efforts towards enhancing their adaptive capacity and strengthening resilience. Established in 2011, 18 countries are implementing their LoCAL adaptation actions, which use country systems to channel finance to communities for locally led adaptation. A further 13 countries are designing their LoCAL interventions, including Tunisia – the first North Africa country to join the community. To date, LoCAL has mobilised over US $125 million for resilience building across Africa, Asia the Caribbean and Pacific.

LoCAL offers a standard and internationally recognized country-based mechanism to channel climate finance to local government authorities for adaptation efforts. The LoCAL Mechanism combines Performance-Based Climate Resilience Grants (PBCRGs) that ensure programming and verification of climate change expenditures at the local level. At the same time, LoCAL offers strong incentives for performance improvements in enhanced resilience through technical and capacity-building support, as well as monitoring and quality assurance.

This year’s LoCAL Board is the first face-to-face gathering for three years due to COVID-19 travel and meeting restrictions and an opportunity for LoCAL countries to coordinate and forge alliances.

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