Both the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the first Global Stocktake have pushed for greater progress on adaptation if we are to secure a liveable future for all. Both have also told us how finance is the key driver for this progress and needs to be ramped up considerably, should we wish to act in this closing window of opportunity.
This paper explores what barriers exist to achieving the kind of finance-flows needed for truly transformative adaptation in regions where it is needed most. Success in this regard hinges on an understanding of Article 2.1c of the Paris Agreement, which aims to 'make finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development'. 'Climate-resilient development', this paper argues, requires the inclusion of adaptation and mitigation - as well as sustainable development and poverty alleviation. By highlighting adaptation as a key component of climate-resilient development, this paper hopes to avoid partaking in the many trade-offs that exist when approaching Article 2.1c; namely, side-lining adaptation in favour of mitigation.
Going beyond finance itself, this paper also dissects the the actions taken to direct and scale up these finance flows, the institutions that govern and regulate these flows, and the incentives and disincentives that influence the decision-making around them.
