LAYOUT EXAMPLES TO COPY FROM
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What you will learn in this lesson:
- How to align your emissions inventory with international standards
- How to define an inventory boundary
- How to identify sources of GHG emissions by sector and scope
Audited budgets
Generally: At least international banks (often called “international financing institutions” (IFIs) , amongst them development banks) would check first if the LG can present audited budget declarations of the last years (audited by an independent auditor). If these budget declarations are proven correct, this is considered as a first proof that the city’s finance management is reliable.
How can a local government with limited resources leverage them to tackle climate change?
Delivering climate projects through local government’s own resources
The Makueni County Kenya case study demonstrates how internal sources to fund climate change projects can be obtained and managed.
As mentioned in the previous section, the Makueni County dedicated a percentage of their budget to a climate change fund, that was situated within the Environment and Climate Change department and managed by a board of members. This fund can be used across different departments e.g., the transport department to climate proof infrastructure. A special purpose account was set up in a commercial bank with three signatories – the fund manager (an accountant), the Chief Officer for Environment and Chief officer of Financial services. The use of the money in the fund is overseen by the board of directors. The board members are representatives of the 6 sub-counties that make up the Makueni County, so that every region and their climate change needs are equally heard. The board also includes representatives from the sectors most impacted by climate change – health, water, environment, and agriculture. There is one position available for the private sector. The board is responsible for approving the spending of the climate change funds and overseeing the projects implemented with this fund.
Contact someone to find out about planned projects
If your country has a direct access entity, contact it to find out what projects are planned.
Turning an invasive plant species into a nature-based solution (Dakar, Senegal)
Vital Capital Fund has USD 350 million in assets investing in developing areas, principally in Sub-Saharan Africa, in infrastructure, housing projects, agro-industrial projects, renewable energy, health care, and education domains. Also, another private investment company is Blue Orchard Finance, created as part of a UN initiative, or the Triodos Investment Management managing a dozen of sustainable investment funds. Many more investors have formed consortia to make investments in SSA
International Climate Funds
Such funds are often born out of international agreements or diplomacy, such as via the annual UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP). Common features of these funds include:
- Dedicated to supporting climate action in developing and emerging economies, often with a specific preference for funding projects in Small-Island Development States (SIDS) and Less-Developed Countries (LDCs).
- Typically operate at a larger scale such as national and regional rather than local.
- Most International Climate Funds can only be accessed by “accredited entities”
- For the Green Climate Fund (GCF), these are mostly development banks (e.g., AFD, World Bank, AfDB), implementing entities (e.g., UN organisations, GIZ), but also national entities (e.g., South African SANBI, Senegalese CSE, KCB Bank Kenya Limited), that have passed the accreditation process.
- Projects need to be rather “big”, often too big for one local community. A solution can be to “pool” measures and/or projects that can be replicated in various local communities.
- Often, co-funding is required either from the national government or from another funding entity. Additionally, the national government must agree to each project (through a designated person).
Examples of international climate funds that are well known and established funds that provide climate finance for a variety of projects:
- The Green Climate Fund (GCF)
- The Adaptation Fund
- The Global Environment Facility (GEF).
Mangroves are efficient carbon sinks! Mangroves store more carbon per unit area than any other ecosystem on Earth. Mangrove forests cover just 0.1 percent of the planet’s surface but store up to 10 times more carbon per hectare than terrestrial forests. This carbon-storing superpower makes mangroves a critical part of the solution to climate change.
Stationary energy
Adaptation
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) defines adaptation as adjustments in ecological, social, or economic systems in response to actual or expected climatic stimuli and their effects or impacts.
Adopting urban planning for housing and developing to reduce exposure to climate shocks
Adaptation measures in cities
*Click on the red dots on the image below for more information
Urban greening:
Increasing tree cover and green spaces to battle the urban heat island effect. Trees and other natural elements also absorb pollutants and provide us with fresh air.
Community gardens:
Community gardens help increase water retention while encouraging community-building and local conservation.
Green roofs:
Greening rooftops to reduce summer heat, provide winter insulation and reduce stormwater runoff.
Permeable surfaces:
Increasing permeable surfaces and wetlands to increase natural infiltration of rainwater, and reduce stormwater runoff and flooding.
Roads stormwater drainage systems:
Properly planned stormwater drainage systems help reduce road erosion and flooding
Mangroves or sea walls:
Stabilizes the shore against erosion and reduces wind and wave power during coastal storms
Early warning systems:
Aims to avoid or reduce the damages caused from hazards.
Riparian Buffer Strips:
Vegetated buffer zones alongside watercourses can significantly contribute to improve micro-climatic conditions, reduce the run-off of sediments and pollutants reaching the watercourse, increase groundwater recharge, and reduce vulnerability to floods
Projects and policies targeted at those most vulnerable
Climate hazards and how cities can respond
*Slide the orange line on the left to see how adaptation measures can help make cities more liveable
References
- CDP. 2021. Cities on the Route to 2030
- C40. 2021. How to adapt your city to sea-level rise and coastal flooding
- C40. 2021. How to adapt your city to extreme heat
- C40. 2021. How to reduce flood risk in your city
- IPCC. 2022. Sixth assessment report: Working Group II – Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability – Fact sheet – Africa
The Mali Climate Fund, the first national climate fund established in Africa in 2012, was signed between the Government of the Republic of Mali and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The Mali Climate Fund is used to mobilise, blend and utilise domestic and international, public and private, sources of finance towards the implementation of the Green Economy and Climate Resilient strategy. It also contributes to the realisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
In 2019, 9 projects were being executed thanks to the Malian Climate Fund, amounting to a total financing of USD 8 million.
These projects mainly aim at reinforcing Malian communities’ resilience towards the effects of climate change. The projects are multi-sectoral including agriculture, water management, energy access, education and forestry.
118 Malian cities and villages are currently benefitting directly from these projects.
Two examples are the CEMALI programme aiming at reducing deforestation by regulating the fuelwood sector, and the PRENCC programme, reinforcing Malian people’s access to irrigation and resilience towards the effects of climate change.
“Dangers and opportunities” dimension
Example
It’s important to have discussions with all stakeholders about climate change – some of them urban, but even those who are based in the villages were already very aware of the changes that were happening, but had not made the link to know that its effects associated with global warming and hence climate change. In the local languages (Kamba, Swahili) there is no name for ‘climate change’ per se – you need to use an entire sentence to describe it - it is an alien term. People are able to connect the dots of past and recent events when you sit down and speak with them. This was the case for the people living in majority of the rural areas in the Makueni County.
