Women and gender groups have been called upon to make their interest in climate finance matters as they relate with the Green Climate Fund (GCF) known to the appropriate authorities and entities.
Ms. Titilope Akosa, Executive Director, Centre for 21st Century Issues (C21st), who made the submission in Lagos at a daylong forum on Thursday, February 25, 2021, listed the authorities and entities to include the National Designated Authorities (NDAs), National Implementing Entities (NIEs), other Implementing Entities (IEs) operating in country.
While the Department of Climate Change in the Federal Ministry of Environment is regarded as Nigeria’s NDA, an IE is an international, regional, national or sub-national entity (such as the Africa Finance Corporation) accredited with the GCF.
Akosa, who is also the GCF Gender Monitor for Anglophone Africa, made a presentation titled “Gender Responsive GCF Readiness in Africa” at the Training on Green Climate Fund Readiness Support Programme and Consultative Forum on Nigeria’s Readiness Support, organised by C21st with Both ENDS.
While describing the training as a follow-up to three others held in 2020 in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt that focused on GCF and climate finance processes, she also enjoined participants to lin up with their NDAs or Focal Points to get information about the status of GCF access and readiness in their countries to identify entry points for gender mainstreaming.
Besides offering gender expertise to inform the readiness processes, Akosa urged them to advocate for gender responsive consultations throughout the readiness processes and ensure participation of women’s groups.
“Women rights advocates can also work in collaboration with broader civil society to ensure a robust readiness stakeholders’ consultation, while joining the GCF Africa Gender Monitors Network to learn more,” she said, listing Women/Gender Priority Actions for Readiness to include:
- advocating for the setting up of and inclusion of women in the Technical committee to the NDA
- including gender expertise and competency in NDA/Focal Points (FPs) technical committee
- making gender competency a criterion for selecting Readiness Delivery Partners
- paying courtesy visits to NDAs/FPs to register the interest of women groups in the GCF processes at country levels, and
- encouraging the articulation of gender action plan and budget for the Readiness proposal.
According to her, the GCF Independent evaluation of the Readiness Programme found that Africa may be lagging with respect to mainstreaming gender in her Readiness processes compared to Latin America, Asia and the Pacific.
The GCF is the designated multilateral financing channel under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and is the main financial mechanism to implement the Paris Agreement and assist developing country parties in implementing their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
The GCF Readiness and Preparatory Support Programme (also referred to as “Readiness” or “Readiness Programme”) is a programme of assistance to help countries get ready, or to become readier, to access climate finance. It is part of the GCF funding and support modalities aimed at helping countries advance their climate change adaptation and mitigation priorities.
Akosa disclosed that all developing countries including African states are qualified to access readiness support, adding that the programme is driven by recipient country governments through their NDAs or FPs.
