Adaptation Fund: Québec pledges CAD3m to support actions in vulnerable countries

The Adaptation Fund received good news at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York on Monday 23 September 2019, where the Government of Québec announced it is contributing 3 million Canadian dollars to the Fund which will support the Fund’s concrete adaptation work on the ground to the most vulnerable communities in developing countries around the world.

The Government of Québec is a first-time contributor to the Fund. The contribution amounts to about US$ 2.26 million, based on currency exchange rates. It will also go toward serving the goals of the Paris Agreement, which calls for increased action in climate mitigation and adaptation. The Adaptation Fund has been formally serving the Paris Agreement since January 1, 2019, after Parties decided at the UN COP 24 climate change conference in December that the Fund shall serve the Agreement.

“The consequences of climate change are being felt on all continents,” said the Hon. Nadine Girault, Québec’s Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie. “Fighting climate change and adapting to its impacts unquestionably represent the greatest challenge of our time. We firmly believe in the importance of international climate solidarity with countries that are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. By contributing to the Adaptation Fund, the Government of Québec wishes to strengthen its action in this area in collaboration with a partner that is recognized for its ability to carry out relevant adaptation projects that lead to concrete on-site results.”

The Government of Québec is progressive in tackling climate change and views it as a top priority. It established a cap and trade system for emissions in 2013 and linked it to California’s system in 2014, creating the largest carbon market in North America and the first to be designed and managed by subnational governments. Québec places all proceeds from the market into its Green Fund, which supports implementation of its climate actions. The Government of Québec is committed to supporting its companies, municipalities and citizens to reduce emissions, adapt to climate change and shift to a robust, innovative and low-carbon economy.

At the international level, the provincial government has declared itself bound to the Paris Agreement, committing itself to ensure the Agreement’s implementation in Québec’s areas of jurisdiction.

“The Adaptation Fund is very pleased and grateful to receive the Government of Québec’s generous contribution,” said Adaptation Fund Board Chair Ms. Sylviane Bilgischer, of Belgium. “It illustrates the region’s progressiveness in battling the risks and effects of climate change and also the importance of participation in global climate finance from all actors, including national and subnational governments, to help meet the tremendous adaptation needs the world is facing.”

The importance of participation by all in global climate finance, from national to subnational governments, regions and cities continues to rise as the urgency of climate change increases. The Adaptation Fund has received a consistent level of support from subnational governments since it became the first climate fund to receive a pledge from a regional government when the Brussels-Capital Region of Belgium announced its initial pledge of US$ 1.59 million to the Fund in early 2013. The Fund has since received a total of nearly US$ 24 million from Belgium’s Walloon, Flanders and Brussels-Capital regional governments across 11 separate contributions.

“The actions of countries, federated states, regions and cities must be consistent and concerted in order to maximize the benefits of the efforts being made,” said Ms. Girault. “The Government of Québec is pleased to make this contribution, which I am certain will provide real benefits to populations for whom building resilience to climate change is no longer an option but rather a priority and a necessity.”

The new pledge follows a successful COP 24 climate change conference in Poland last December for the Adaptation Fund, in which a record total of US$ 129 million was raised for the Fund from nine different contributors. The Fund also raised another US$ 67,000 through an innovative digital platform with Visa during COP 24, and in April 2019 a new donation to the Fund was announced by young inspirational climate leader Ms. Greta Thunberg. The Fund also receives a small share of proceeds from the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism projects, but they have been down since the global carbon market dropped in 2012. Any individual, private or public organization can also contribute online to the Fund.

“This new and generous pledge from the Government of Québec is very important not only through its direct financial impact but also because it expands the funding base for the Fund. It represents the first government in the Americas to support the Fund, and marks the 14th different funding source for the Fund in just the last nine months,” said Mikko Ollikainen, Manager of the Adaptation Fund. “It is greatly important that the Fund maintains a steady stream of diverse funding channels to help meet its growing demand. Québec’s contribution will help the Fund reach more climate-vulnerable communities with locally tailored, effective and urgently needed adaptation measures.”

The combined contributions and the new pledge from the Government of Québec will help the Fund meet rising demand for adaptation projects. The Fund has been receiving record demand for projects, with US$ 268 million sought through 40 proposals submitted for review at its Board meeting in March 2019. In addition to the more than US$ 650 million the Fund has already committed to 94 concrete adaptation projects across the globe, it has a project pipeline of about another US$ 270 million.