Laos, UN join forces to mitigate effects of climate change

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, United Nations Environment Climate Change Adaptation Unit and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) are collaborating to support the improved effectiveness and impact of climate change adaptation in Laos.
Government officials and stakeholders gathered in Vientiane yesterday to attend a validation workshop on a draft project proposal for building the capacity of Laos to advance the National Adaptation Planning process.
Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Dr Xaynakhone Inthavong, and Task Project Manager, UN Environment, Mr Alexander Forbes were co-chairs of the event.

The proposed Global Environment Facility project will build on government priorities, policies and programmes on climate change adaption, and will help catalyse action towards their implementation.
The project aims to strengthen the capacity of the government to integrate climate change adaptation priorities into national, sub-national and local planning, financing and monitoring, concentrating on the sectors most vulnerable to climate change.
This will involve extending and deepening institutional and technical capacity, leading to better climate change knowledge systems to inform adaptation planning and to integrate climate change adaptation priorities into national development plans, sector policies and plans, public sector budgets, and private sector activities.
Since September 2018, a consultant team has been working closely with the Climate Change Adaptation Division of the ministry’s Climate Change Department and key stakeholders to prepare the full Global Environment Facility project document based on the original project concept endorsed by the GEF Council last month.
The overall project objective is to strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of stakeholders and the government to advance the National Adaptation Planning process, which will be achieved through the following four project outcomes.
Firstly, the capacity of stakeholders to advance the National Adaptation Planning process will be strengthened at the national level and across the 18 provinces of Laos.
Secondly, there will be a strengthened system for developing, upgrading and sharing climate information to advance this process.
Thirdly, climate change adaptation is mainstreamed into socio-economic development planning in Laos in the medium- and long-term, and lastly, the capacity to monitor and review the National Adaptation Planning process in Laos is strengthened.
The main elements of the project design and proposed components were presented at the validation workshop yesterday to key institutional stakeholders engaged in climate change adaptation science, policy, programming, monitoring and financing. 
The feedback from workshop participants will contribute towards the finalisation of the final project document and ensure that it takes into account the perspectives of key stakeholders.

By Times Reporters
(Latest Update February 28, 2019)