Adaptation Fund Approves Grant for Caribbean Concept…Jamaica, Cuba, Dominican Republic to Benefit

by Indi Mclymont-Lafayette – CNS Contributor

BONN, Germany,  Oct 15 2015 – The Adaptation Fund Board has approved a US$20,000-grant for the
development of a regional climate change project in three islands – Jamaica, Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

The project focuses on local adaptation response to the troubling phenomena and early warning information for the Caribbean.

On the last of its two days of meeting last Friday (October 9), the Board reviewed a project concept, which was submitted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) outlining the main objective of the concept, which is to upscale the function of the local Risk Reduction Centres in the Caribbean municipalities so that they can act as clearing houses and coordination centres for early warning information.

The US$20,000will be used to ensure the development of the concept into a full proposal which the Board will review upon submission.

“This will allow adaptation with the regional scope. It is very important for the Caribbean as it will boost the early warning system and it has implications for timely notification of changes in rainfall patterns across the region,” said Adaptation Fund Board Member and head of Jamaica’s Meteorological Service, Jeffrey Spooner.

“It will also help with cost effectiveness as there will be one management fee across all three countries and it will also help with the regional approach,” he explained.
If the proposal is submitted and is successful it will be the second time that Jamaica will be receiving a grant from the Adaptation Fund. In mid-2012, it received a US$10,000 million grant to implement a four-year project focusing on coastal adaptation and boosting climate smart agriculture.

At last week’s meeting the Adaptation Fund Board also announced that it had accredited the Environment Division of Antigua and Barbuda as a National Implementing Entity, which means that that island is now eligible to apply for Funding from the Board.

The Adaptation Fund was established in 2005 to help countries being impacted by climate change to more easily access funding to adjust to climate change.
The Fund is noted for its direct access modality enabling developing countries to access funding directly from it rather than going through a multilateral entity which is the modus operandi of many international lending agencies.

The Caribbean islands have been identified as extremely vulnerable to climate impacts such as stronger hurricanes, longer droughts, hotter summers, coral bleaching and sea level rise.