Introduction - Climate Change Adaptation and Development: Transforming Paradigms and Practices - page 8

Global Environment Facility (GEF), the official financing mechanism for the
UNFCCC. Initially the GEF focused mainly on climate change mitigation
and biodiversity activities, with some limited financing of vulnerability and
adaptation assessments and studies, and with less focus on capacity building
and almost no emphasis on implementation of adaptation actions (Young 2002).
In order to increase adaptation financing, GEF launched a Strategic Priority on
Adaptation (SPA) in 2004. The GEF also hosts the Least Developed Countries
Fund (LDCF) and the Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF). The Adaptation
Fund (AF) is a financial instrument under the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol
(KP), financed through a share of proceeds from the Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM) and voluntary donor contributions.
The 'absorption' of climate change and adaptation into a development-as-
usual paradigm is further indicated in the tools used by the various financing
funds, such as the LDCF/SCCF Adaptation Monitoring and Assessment Tool,
where the explicit goal is to integrate adaptation measures in development
policies, plans, programmes, projects and actions (GEF 2010). As pointed out
by Klein (2010), mainstreaming has been a challenge, especially with respect
to evaluation, monitoring and financing. It is sometimes difficult to single out
the climate component, and the question of 'additionality' in funding has been
raised by developing countries who are worried that adaptation funding is merely
a reallocation of existing development funding (Michaelowa and Michaelowa
2010). This has especially been the case since the financial crisis, which resulted
in significant cuts in development funding (Kirigia et al. 2011). 1
Against this backdrop, the total amount of funding currently available for
adaptation is considered insufficient and difficult to access. This has led to calls,
such as at the 8th international conference on Community Based Adaptation
to Climate Change, for not only greater commitment of funds, but also greater
inclusivity and transparency (Kathmandu Declaration 2014).
Donors have a strong influence on adaptation discourses and what types of
formal adaptation efforts are carried out in practice. However, common to most
of the adaptation projects funded bilaterally or through the GEF, including the
'softer measures', is that they tend to focus on reducing the direct impact(s) of
climate change, often through skills transfer or provision of specific information
such as land-management techniques. Adaptation interventions have mainly
taken the form of supporting activities that deal with current climate variability,
such as disaster-risk reduction (flood control, drought mitigation and relief),
social safety nets, water management, ecosystems management (forests,
mangrove plantations), agricultural practices, improved meteorological
services and forecasting, microfinance, and insurance such as index-based
insurance. Some infrastructural measures (dimensioning of roads, pipes,
flood and coastal defences) and agricultural adjustments (promoting drought-
resistant crops, climate-smart agriculture, irrigation) as well as institutional
changes (land-tenure change, land-use planning and building regulations,
support of local institutions) have also been promoted as adaptation to climate