Why adaptation finance should be additional to Official Development Assistance

This briefing note tackles the issue of funding intended for developing countries to address climate change, which aims at helping them: (i) adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change, and (ii) promoting sustainable development in ways that limit the emissions of greenhouse gases. It asserts that the amounts pledged and received so far are insufficient to meet the current adaptation needs of developing countries and that lessons need to be learned from evaluations of aid effectiveness on how to support participatory decision making on adaptation amongst all levels of society. It also states that the use of existing development funds for adaptation is unjust as it forces those already living in poverty to sacrifice their right to development in order to cope with climate threats; and introduces the principle of additionality, which requires adaptation funding to be extra to other funding already assigned for developing countries.