UNDP: The Green Climate Fund, everything you wanted to know in 8,5 min

Robert Kelly

UNDP GCF Focal Point - Africa

The Green Climate Fund:

Everything You Ever Wanted

to Know…in Eight-And-A-

Half Minutes

1

The GEF serves 6 international conventions…

Climate Change

Mitigation

Biodiversity

Land

Degradation

STAR Allocations Non-STAR GEF Trust Fund

International Waters

Chemicals

Enabling

Activities

LDCF SCCF

Sustainable

Forest

Management

1

2

…the GCF serves just one convention1

3

Adaptation and mitigation (and REDD!) are eligible2

Mitigation Adaptation SIDS,LDCs,Africa

Other developing countries

All Non-Annex 1 countries are eligible, in principle, for GCF support

4

GCF projects are significantly larger than GEF projects3

10.2

7.5

27.1

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

GCF CIFs GEF-6

CC-M

LDCF FCPF SCCF AF

Total pledge ($ bn)

Ple

dg

e (

US

$ b

illi

on

s)

Ave

rag

e p

roje

ct s

ize

(US

$ m

illion

s)

1.30.9 0.8

3.6 4.1

2.1

0.3

4.2

0.3

6.6

Average project size ($ m)

26.7

Climate Fund Capitalisations

5

Project-cycle differences

FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept note

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

6


FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

Similar to an

NPFE – but

note: no

country STAR

allocations!

7


FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

A GCF concept

note is a

voluntary step

8


FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

There is

(currently) no

project

preparation

grant (PPG)

9


FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

The LoNO is

obtained at a

relatively late

stage

10


FP

/

ND

A

GC

F

Secre

tari

at

GC

FB

oard

Ideas

Phase

Project Concept

Development

Full Proposal

Phase

Implementation

Phase

Impact

Period

Project idea

Voluntary work

programme

Project

concept

development

Recommend-

ation to

proceed

Full proposal

preparation

Letter of No

Objection

Technical

reviews

Board decision

to proceed

Commission-

ing / launch

Management,

M&E

Project

Agreement

with AE

4

Disbursements

(and agency

fee) are annual

and are

performance-

based

11

33 GCF Accredited Entities to date (vs 18 GEF Agencies)5

12

Not all Accredited Entities are born equal…6

Micro(up to US$

10m)

Small(US$ 10-

50m)

Medium(US$ 50-

250m)

Large(US$

250m+)

Total Project

Budget

High Risk (Category A)Activities with potential significant

adverse environmental and/or

social impacts that are diverse,

irreversible or unprecedented

Environmental & Social

Risks

Medium Risk (Category B)Activities with potential mild


social impacts that are few in

number, generally site-specific,

largely reversible and readily

addressed

Low Risk (Category C)Activities with minimal or no


social impacts

Fiduciary

Standard

Grants

On-Granting

Loans

13

Grants versus loans…7

• Fuzzy rules – case-by-case assessment

• Projects that do not generate revenues grants

• E.g. building a sea-wall; assisting subsistence farmers

• Projects that do generate revenues but not for the project itself

grants

• E.g. assisting small-scale commercial farmers; support to

SMEs

• Projects that do generate revenues for the project itself loans

• E.g. investing in a commercial wind farm; commercial

forestry

14

Trust nobody…except (maybe) your RTA8

15

How to keep your RTA happy9

RTA fully

consulted

prior to GCF

project

development

OR ?

RTA not fully

consulted

prior to GCF

project

development

16

The End

(Pause for

breath)

Robert Kelly

Robert Kelly

UNDP GCF Focal Point - Africa

What Is The GCF?

Functions, Governance,

Programming

18

The purpose of the GCF

“The Green Climate Fund was established with a mission to advance

the goal of keeping the temperature increase on our home planet

below 2 degrees Celsius.

The Fund is a unique global initiative to respond to climate change by

investing in low-emission and climate-resilient development.

GCF was established by 194 governments to limit or reduce

greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries, and to help adapt

vulnerable societies to the unavoidable impacts of climate change.

Given the urgency and seriousness of the challenge, the Fund is

mandated to make an ambitious contribution to the united global

response to climate change.”

19

Structure of the GCF

Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC

Standing Committee on Climate Finance

GCF Board

As with the GEF, the

GCF is “accountable to

and will function under

the guidance of” the

COP

• The GCF has full

responsibility for funding

decisions

• The GCF receives annual

guidance from the COP

• The GCF provides an

annual report to the COP

• The COP can request

further information

20




GCF Board

Risk Mitigation Committee(exposure and liquidity)

Investment Committee(GCF investment framework)

Ethics & Audit Committee(transparency, conflicts of

interest)

Private Sector Advisory

Group (PSAG)(mainstreaming private sector)

21




GCF Board

Executive Director(Héla Cheikhrouhou)

22




GCF Board

Executive Director(Héla Cheikhrouhou)

Country

Programming

Mitigation &

Adaptation

Private Sector

Facility

External

Affairs

Support

Services

23

National Designated Authorities (NDAs)

• The GCF Board has agreed that “a country-driven approach is a

core principle to build the business model of the Fund.”

• Countries are represented by National Designated Authorities

(NDAs) or Focal Points

• A Focal Point is typically individual within a ministry or

government agency. A Focal Point can be designated as a

preliminary first step while preparing to establish an NDA

(understood to be a team of people)

• However, NDAs and Focal Points have equivalent status in the

GCF

24

The role of National Designated Authorities (NDAs)

Focal Points / NDAs have 2 defined roles in the GCF:

1. To approve accreditation submissions from sub-national / national entities

2. To provide a Letter of No Objection (LoNO) for each project / programme

submission from an accredited entity:

o The LoNO can accompany the submission

o Or the LoNO can be supplied to the GCF Secretariat within 30 days of

submission

o If no LoNO is received within 30 days, the proposal is considered

cancelled

o FPs / NDAs decide how no-objection is determined, though there is an

expectation of stakeholder consultation

o Also, each proposal from an accredited entity must provide a

description of how country ownership was determined

25

African / Arab countries without an FP or NDA

26

Eight projects approved to date

27

But…

• $2.5 billion Board approvals target for 2016 – and $3.5bn in

each of 2017 and 2018

• 41 funding proposals are in the pipeline, totalling $2.4 billion in

GCF funding

• 9 proposals to be considered by the GCF Board in June – 4 of

which are from UNDP

• “Go home and start a conversation about the potential for

engagement with the GCF, reach out to NDAs, and get working

on your GCF proposals”

- Zaheer Fakir, GCF Co-Chair, speaking at UNFCCC event,

Bonn, May 2016

28

The End

Robert Kelly