NAP Expo 2019: Achieving co-benefits of climate change adaptation and LDN

16 April 2019
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Songdo, Republic of Korea – UNCCD participated in the annual NAP Expo to explore the potential of pursuing climate change adaptation and land degradation by advancing national adaptation plans (NAPs).

A panel discussion introducing LDN as well as project-level experiences from Peru, Kenya, Georgia and Argentina along with a donor perspective of Korea, was followed by interactive exercises that explored the challenges of pursuing climate change adaptation and LDN through the same project.

One of the guiding principles of LDN is that planning and implementation should be incorporated into existing processes, promoting consideration of vulnerable ecosystems. As countries are still in the early stages of formulating their NAPs, there is plenty of opportunities to promote synergies between climate change adaptation and LDN. It is very likely that a climate change adaptation project with a focus on land or water will contribute to the achievement of LDN if it can help prevent negative land cover change, the loss of net primary productivity and the loss of soil organic carbon.

In practice, many climate change adaptation projects include interventions to limit or reverse land degradation, but they are not necessarily reported under LDN. The largest barrier identified by the participants seemed to be institutional and can be readily resolved: ensuring that all three Rio Conventions and their funding mechanisms actively promote integrated projects. Sponsors and national agencies need to actively encourage and reward integrated co-benefit approaches.

The NAP Expo is an annual outreach event organized by the Least Developed Countries Expert Group of the UNFCCC in collaboration with various bodies and organizations to promote exchange of experiences and foster partnerships between a wide range of actors and stakeholders on how to advance National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).