Pacific countries on the frontline of climate change get support to unlock climate financing for the future of the region
September 15, 2023 – Vulnerable island nations in the Pacific are in urgent need of resources to respond to the worsening climate crisis. Building on the success of mobilizing US $67 million in climate finance its first year of operation, the Climate Finance Access Network (CFAN) is partnering with the Pacific Community (SPC) and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) to expand capabilities in financing where they are most needed.
CFAN provides localized technical support to developing nations to respond to a clear gap in meeting country-identified needs around climate finance access. The result is a network that provides technical support to unlock and accelerate climate finance at scale by deploying embedded climate finance advisors at national and regional levels.
Launched in 2021 with the support of the Canadian Government, CFAN placed advisors in Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. In their first year, these advisors unlocked US $67 million in climate financing to support resilience, with an additional US $348 million investment pipeline.
“What CFAN’s Pacific advisors have achieved demonstrates that this model of highly trained, long-term, embedded support works to secure finance where it’s needed most,” said Laetitia De Marez, Senior Director of CFAN and RMI’s Islands Energy Program. “The results are clear: a robust and diverse pipeline of high-impact projects. We are excited to build on that success and support countries’ ambitions as the network expands in the region and globally.”
A generous philanthropic donor has joined CFAN and allowed the network to further extend its reach in the Pacific by deploying three additional advisors in French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), along with embedding an advisor in the Pacific Community (SPC).
“The Government of FSM is grateful to CFAN for expanding their network in the Pacific, which currently enables FSM to access much-needed skillsets through technical assistance support,” said Belinda Hadley, Team Leader, FSM National Designated Authority to the Green Climate Fund. “With CFAN’s support, FSM will be able to raise its climate ambitions, plan and prepare for climate investment opportunities, and mainstream climate considerations into investment approaches. As a result of CFAN’s expansion, the FSM NDA office, in partnership with SPC, will now be able to better manage and enhance climate finance and realize FSM’s climate ambitions, especially through its upcoming national adaption planning process.”
Advisors will begin their training in November, immediately following their placement in-country. SPC, the region’s largest scientific and technical organization delivering development solutions in the region, owned and governed by 27 country and territory members, is well-positioned to serve its members through the dedicated support of CFAN’s services.
“Our Pacific Island countries and territories have consistently raised the issue of capacity constraints in being able to access the complex climate finance landscape effectively. In response, our region has received decades of fly-in, fly-out models of advisory support whose efficacy has been limited, insufficient, and often unsustainable,” said Coral Pasisi, SPC’s Director of Climate Change and Sustainability. “Together with our ongoing efforts of building shared capability in unlocking climate finance flows for our members, we are delighted to be able to work with CFAN and other partners to provide a growing complement of more sustainable and networked capacity in the Pacific, enabling island nations to continue to lead on climate action and ambition.”
Existing CFAN advisors will also be extended in their respective countries for an additional three years due to funding support by the Australian Government. GGGI, CFAN’s regional implementing partner for Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, will continue to host and support these advisors.
Mr. Prashant Chandra, Acting Head of Climate Change within the Prime Minister’s Office in Fiji said, “CFAN’s work in Fiji has been effective in engaging with multiple stakeholders across the development landscape, from line ministries and private sector to indigenous landowners and regional organizations. So far, CFAN in Fiji has developed a project pipeline of over US $100 million in focused sectors like renewable energy, climate smart agriculture, water, eco-tourism, resilient housing, and coastal adaptation, some of which have already secured funding for implementation. For Phase 2, we are expecting CFAN to assist in increasing access to climate finance for Pacific Island countries for vulnerable and target areas and also ensuring long term sustainability of its program in the Pacific region.”
More information on the work being done by CFAN advisors in the Pacific can be found at https://cfanadvisors.org/where-we-work/
For press inquiries, please contact Denali Hussin, dhussin@rmi.org or Lisa Kingsberry, Pacific Community (SPC), media@spc.int
The Climate Finance Access Network (CFAN) is an agile, demand-driven initiative that offers a practical and actionable solution to developing countries facing capacity constraints in accessing climate finance. The network is hosted by RMI, an independent, non-partisan, nonprofit organization. Follow CFAN on LinkedIn and Twitter, and learn more at https://cfanadvisors.org/
The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is a treaty-based international, inter-governmental organization with 46 member states, dedicated to supporting and promoting strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth in developing countries and emerging economies. Learn more at https://gggi.org/
The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, proudly supporting development since 1947. SPC is an international development organisation owned and governed by our 27 country and territory members. Learn more at https://www.spc.int/
Further Background
The impact of the projects supported by CFAN advisors cuts across sectors and communities, from grid stabilization and coastal restoration to water infrastructure security and more. The Adaptation Fund recently approved a project proposal supported by the CFAN Advisor to Papua New Guinea, which will benefit 18,600 people directly and more than 87,000 indirectly through climate-resilient agricultural practice.
CFAN aims to build lasting capacity at the national and regional level, ensuring that countries are not overly dependent on external capacity. With a community of practice designed to share learnings and spread knowledge within host countries, CFAN is establishing long-term, in-country expertise that will last beyond the tenure of any one advisor. Additionally, CFAN is taking a strong regional approach that draws on the experiences and learnings of countries across the Pacific, capitalizing on a multi-faceted and nimble approach to project implementation that now includes the placement of advisors in Direct Access Entities (DAEs) as well as in country ministries.
CFAN’s efforts in the Pacific address the needs of developing countries, particularly Small Island Developing States (including Territories) who struggle to access critical climate finance in the increasingly complex and challenging international financing ecosystem. Bringing together international and regional organizations, country leadership, and climate finance practitioners, CFAN’s expansion in the Pacific demonstrates climate finance access at scale.
